


Designing Love

by sbstevenson2



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-15
Updated: 2018-07-14
Packaged: 2019-03-05 07:22:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 104,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13382952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sbstevenson2/pseuds/sbstevenson2
Summary: Robin Locksley is the owner of Locksley Advertising who hires Regina Mills, an interior decorator, to redesign his office space, Fortunately for Robin, he finds more than just her design skills catch his eye. Fluff, a little angst. Rating will go up later on ;)





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Here we go! This is my first attempt at a multi-chapter fic. I have been working on this for several months (so I have more than one chapter written already obviously lol) but it's still definitely being heavily worked on. 
> 
> Thanks for the lovely Brooke and Shay for looking over this, and Polly's encouragement to share it! Mwah!
> 
> Please leave a review and let me know what y'all think! Thanks :)

**Chapter One**

_Ding. Level 22._

Regina Mills watches as the numbers on the elevator go up and up. She smooths out the imaginary wrinkles in her black, high waisted pencil skirt and slides her hand over her dark tresses to make sure there are no frizzy fly aways. Her mother had always told her it is always important to look professional, especially when meeting a client for the first time.

_Ding. Level 23._

The doors open, revealing a large waiting area with a tall, black desk and a few metal chairs. It's mostly empty, but Regina assumes that's one of the rooms she'll be redoing while lending her design services to Locksley Advertising.

Regina Mills has always loved designing, and redesigning, different living spaces. For as long as she can remember, she always knew she wanted to become an interior decorator. She went to school, studied hard and eventually landed a low-paying internship at one of the most well-known interior design companies in New York City. After a few years of moving her way up the decorating ladder, Regina had been able to branch out and start her own company – not that she didn't love working for  _Zelena Westend Designs_ , but there was always something appealing about being her own boss and running her own company. She was able to get her business off the ground and running within a few short years and had never looked back. Her business is a small one but is quickly becoming very well known within the design world, and Regina couldn't be happier. She's getting phone calls about new clients every day and usually sends her associates out to start the designing process while she just oversees a majority of the work being done. Sometimes, however, she takes on her own projects – projects like the one that brought her to Locksley Advertising today.

Walking out of the elevator, Regina sees a young, auburn haired woman sitting behind the desk.

"Good afternoon," she greets Regina with a warm and welcoming smile.

"Hello. I'm Regina Mills. I have an appointment with a Mr..." she glances down at her planner before looking back up, "Locksley?"

The girl gives her a friendly smile. "Right this way."

The two women begin walking down a long, empty hallway. The walls definitely need some artwork, and maybe a new paint color, to liven it up a little bit. When they reach the end of the hall, the auburn haired woman knocks on the door before entering.

"Mr. Locksley? Your five o'clock is here."

"Ah, yes. Thank you, Belle." The man smiles as he stands from his large, clunky wooden desk, straightening his pinstripe tie.

_Hideous desk_. Regina thinks to herself.  _That'll be the first thing to go._

Too distracted by the hideous office décor, Regina almost misses the man's introduction of himself. When she looks up, she finds herself looking into two gorgeous, crystal blue eyes that are searching her brown orbs for any indication that she's heard him introduce himself.

"I'm sorry," Regina replies sheepishly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, feeling like a teenage girl for being so affected by a pair of blue eyes. "I was looking at your desk. It's very… vintage."

With a smirk, the man replies, "And very ugly. Which is exactly why I've called you in here. I'm Robin Locksley, owner of Locksley Advertising."

"Yes." She states, quickly scanning her eyes over his business suit clad body, praying that he didn't notice her check him out. There's just something about a gorgeous man in a suit that does things to her. "I'm Regina Mills. I run Storybook Décor. I see we have a lot of work to do, Mr. Locksley," she states, looking around at the almost empty office, which matches the practically empty hallway and waiting area that she's already seen, along with the adjoining offices she'd glanced at on her way down the hall.

"Please, call me Robin," The man chuckles with a certain lilt to his voice. "And yes, I was fortunate enough to be able to move my business to a better location at a rather discounted price. But with that discounted price came the outdated look of the entire office floor," he explains, waving his noticeably smooth hands around in the air, indicating the office space, "which is exactly why I decided to hire someone to handle the decorating for me. I've never been the decorating type of guy," he replies in an adorable British accent that Regina finds herself getting lost in, with even more adorable dimples to match.

"Well," Regina begins, clearing her throat and getting down to business, "I've brought some sketches of different décor styles for you to look at. Is there..." She scans the room for a table to lay them out on.

"Ah, yes. You can put them over here," Robin lifts his eyebrows slightly, nodding his head to the left and walking them over to a large, glass conference table.

Giving him a small smile of gratitude, Regina pulls out the first design from her large, black leather work bag.

She always feels like she's hosting the latest  _HGTV_  television show whenever she meets with a client, and she secretly loves the thrill of showing off her skill to people. She is quite good at what she does, after all.

"This one is more of a farmhouse chic vibe," she says, placing the design down on the table. The sketches she brought today are just for his office – she'll design the other spaces once he picks which style he wants to go with. The farm house design is full of white and beige coloring, wooden lantern light fixtures and plush, comfy pillows. It doesn't really fit the New York vibe, but she's always willing to offer options to her clients. "I don't really take you as a farmhouse type of person, but it's an option." She grins, leaning over to place the first design on the table and sweeping her dark hair to one side.

"This next one is more of a traditional type décor, while this one is more modern." She lays the two designs side by side. The traditional design is the classic office space – warm wall colors, but with richly colored area rugs and comfortable chairs. It's still a bit too relaxed of a look for a business, but again, she offers choices. The modern look is all sleek, clean lines, hardly any furnishings and a bit cold. Modern designs are her least favorite.

"This last one is what we call transitional. It's a mix between the traditional and a more contemporary feel," she says as she runs her hands over the last design, a soft smile playing on her lips. This one is her favorite. Her design consists of a grayer hue for the paint colors, clean lines but with some warmth to make people feel comfortable. Glass and iron elements to give it a masculine feel along with iron backed chairs with cushioned bottoms for clients to sit on. It leaves room for more personal touches than the modern look, while still looking clean and professional.

"Hmm." Robin sighs as he looks over the designs, running a hand along his stubbled jaw. "They're all very well done, each of them stunning in their own way."

Regina lets a small smile ghost over her lips when she glances up and sees Robin looking at her. "Thank you," she says, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, trying to hide the slight blush creeping into her cheeks.

"Yes, I think I like this one best," he pronounces, pointing at the transitional design. "I feel like this would be the most welcoming. I don't think many of my clients would much care for the farmhouse chic look," he jokes, that damn smirk on his face again.

Just then, the office door swings open.

"Papa!" Turning around, Regina spots an adorable, curly brown haired boy running into the office.

"My boy!" Robin exclaims with a paternal glee. "I thought I told you to wait in the conference room with Tink until I was finished in here?"

"I'm sorry, Robin!" A girl sighs, breathing deeply, her blonde ringlets falling into her face. Regina thinks she must be Robin's girlfriend (he's not married – he's not wearing a wedding ring. She's checked out of habit). "He just got away from me for a second."

"That's alright, Tink."

Regina feels a tug on the bottom of her skirt and looks down to see two big, brown eyes staring up at her.

"Hi! I'm Roland!"

"Hello, I'm Regina. How old are you, Roland?" She smiles at the little boy, taking his outstretched hand and shaking it before bending down to be eye level with the dimpled face cutie.

"I'm five!" he exclaims, holding up five little digits and shoving them closer to her face.

"What a fun age!" She giggles, wrapping her fingers around his and gently lowering them back down to his side. "My son is ten," Regina replies, a smile forming on her lips at the thought of her son, Henry.

"I'm sorry," Robin starts. "This is my son, Roland, and his nanny, Tink. Tink this is..."

"You're Regina Mills!" the blonde practically squeals, her hands instantly coming up to cover her mouth.

The girl's eyes are wide with wonder and with a chuckle coming from both Robin and Regina, Regina puts her hand out to shake Tink's.

"Yes, hello." Not the girlfriend, then.  _Good_.

"The New Yorker named you one of the Top 10 up and coming designers in the city!"

Yes, Regina had seen that article and had gotten quite a few more job offers after the magazine ran.

"Tink here is in college studying interior design." Robin waves his hand in the girl's direction. "She watches Roland for me on the nights I have to work late or on weekends when coming into the office is inevitable." He explains, bending to scoop his son into his arms and place a kiss to his mop of brown curls.

"Oh, that's wonderful," Regina beams, feeling like a minor celebrity (and loving it). "It's always nice to meet someone interested in interior design."

Glancing down at her watch, Regina realizes she needs to leave soon. She cannot be late tonight.

"Well," Regina turns to face Robin again, "Why don't I take some measurements and pictures of your offices and then I'll draw up some designs to go over with you in a few days?"

"Sounds wonderful," he says, placing his son back onto the ground before the child sprints off in the direction of his nanny. "I'm just finishing up some work before I leave for the night. Feel free to go around and do what you need to do."

"Thank you." Regina bites her lips to tamper down the smile that she feels creeping onto her face just by looking at this man.

Taking out her measuring tape from her work bag, Regina begins measuring his office, glancing at her watch one last time and realizing she'll have to be quick.

"Papa! We're gonna be late!" Roland whines, skipping back to his father and pulling at his gray sport coat.

"Yes, my boy, let me finish up here and then we can go see Snow White!"

That gets Regina's attention.

"Snow White?"

"Yeah!" Roland squeals. "My school is putting on a Snow White play tonight and the prettiest girl in school is in it."

"How ironic." Regina smirks at Roland's adoration of the pretty girl. "I'm on my way to a play as well. My son, Henry, is performing in it. What school do you go to?"

"Sherwood Elementary."

"Well, so does Henry, so I guess I'll see you at the play!" Regina scans her eyes up from the boy's to his father's, before turning her attention back to the boy who is bouncing with excitement. "Be sure to look for the most handsome Prince Charming you've ever seen - that'll be my Henry." Regina replies, wondering what it is about the little boy's personality that she finds so instantly endearing.

Turning her attention back to Robin, whom she notices has not taken his eyes off of her since she began talking with his son, she says, "Well, I've just about finished all of my measurements. Why don't I draw up some sketches and I can meet back with you in, say, a week?"

"That sounds great." He smiles, his teeth sinking into his bottom lip.  _Damn that's sexy,_  Regina thinks. "Just schedule it with Belle out front and I'll see you then, or rather, I suppose I'll see you," he glances at his watch, "in just under an hour at the play." He states, those dimples beaming on his face again.

"Yes, I suppose so," Regina says, attempting to sound as professional as possible while contemplating why she's so giddy over the thought of seeing Robin outside of this office.

{********************}

She's gorgeous.

That's all Robin Locksley can think as his five o'clock appointment makes her way out of his office, his eyes scanning down her body for a quick second when she turns her back.

After he introduced himself earlier, he was instantly mesmerized by her beauty. Her olive skin, warm, chocolate eyes and long, black hair had his full attention. She had seemed too distracted by his ugly office furniture to notice him checking her out within the first fifteen seconds on meeting her.  _Thank God._

Finding out that their sons go to the same school was just pure luck on his part. Roland has been excited for the school's production of  _Snow White_  ever since he found out Valerie was going to be in it. She is going to be portraying the Evil Queen but  _she's not really evil, Papa - she's the nicest girl in the whole school...and she's my friend!_  is how his kindergartener had explained it to him last weekend. The girl is in fourth grade, but apparently their recess times overlap and he likes to play with her on the playground sometimes.

Knowing Regina was going to be there makes Robin just the smallest bit more excited to suffer through a play that his own son isn't even a part of. But, when Roland had turned those puppy dog eyes up at him a few days ago, begging to go see Valerie in the play, he couldn't refuse.

Watching Regina close the door, Robin is pulled from his thoughts and sits down to finish some last minute paperwork before he and Roland have to leave.

It's with Roland's umpteenth  _Papa! The play!_  as he peeks his head in through the office door, that Robin finally stands and straightens the papers on his desk (he can always get them done tomorrow anyway). He takes his son's hand as they make their way out of his office and on their way to see the most breath-taking beauty he's met in quite some time… and Valerie, of course.

Robin can't stop thinking about Regina. She's all he's been thinking about the whole way down from his office to his car that he now drives, feeling the eyes of Tink boring into him.

The blonde has apparently noticed that he's been quiet on the ride over to the school but hasn't said anything. She just keeps sending knowing glances and smirks his way.

"Do you have something to say?" Robins asks Tink. They've become quite good friends over the years, so talking to each other in a less than professional manner has become acceptable.

"No. Nothing." Tink smirks, her head staying perfectly still as her eyes slide over in his direction. "I'm just glad I could convince you to hire Regina Mills to redecorate your offices. They certainly need it. And she's quite beautiful," Tink adds, sending another knowing glance over to Robin with a wink.

Robin just rolls his eyes, grips the steering wheel and drives a little bit faster to the school.

{********************}

"Sorry I'm late!" Regina huffs, as she rushes into the auditorium.

Daniel, her ex-boyfriend and father of her son, is standing there in black slacks and a green button up shirt. He looks nice. But then again, Daniel is similar to Regina's mother, Cora, in that he always dresses the part. It is important to both Daniel and Cora to put your best face forward.

He's standing with Emma, Regina's best friend, and Henry at their seats, waiting on her.

She and Emma had met their freshman year of college when they had the same Poli-Sci class, but the girls had clashed at first. They were both stubborn young girls who each thought they knew best and were unwilling to see each other's perspectives. It wasn't until a group project where they ended up being the only ones to do any of the work that they realized how well they actually got along. Regina came to appreciate the blonde's dry humor and take-no-prisoners attitude (ironic, since the woman is now a bail bondswoman). They moved into a small, two-bedroom apartment the following semester and lived together until Regina moved in with Daniel a year and a half later. They'd been inseparable since, and she had even asked Emma to be Henry's godmother when the boy was just a baby, which she happily accepted.

"It's ok, Mom. I'm just glad you made it!" Henry says, fidgeting with his hands and worrying his lip with his teeth. It's a gesture Regina knows all too well as one that he's picked up from her.

Regina can tell he's nervous, so she bends down to be eye level with him and places a comforting hand on his shoulder. He's shaking a little bit and her heart aches for him. Henry has always been a reserved child but finally admitted to her a few months ago that he wanted to try out for the school play. It surprised her at first, but when he told her it was  _Snow White_ , she instantly understood. Her son has always loved fairy tales, this one in particular. She can't count the amount of times they've watched the movie and read different versions of the classic tale.

Her stomach immediately knots with nerves for her little prince, but she knows he's going to do a wonderful job. Lord knows they've practiced enough that even  _she_  (and Emma, and Daniel) have his lines memorized.

"You're going to do an excellent job, sweetheart," Regina begins straightening his Prince Charming costume on his shoulders. "You've practiced your lines hundreds of times with me, Emma, and your father. You can do it!" Regina encourages, as she brushes his hair to one side of his forehead.

She leans in to give him a peck on his cheek, which makes him blush and look around to see if any other kids saw her do it, before sending him off backstage to finish getting ready.

"He's going to be fine," Daniel says, placing a hand on the small of Regina's back and giving her a small, encouraging smile. They may not be together anymore, despite how hard Daniel has pushed over the last several months, but they have definitely mastered how to co-parent in a way that works for them.

Regina huffs out a little breath and an uneasy smile, half out of nerves for Henry, the other half from not wanting her ex-boyfriend putting his hand on her back. She doesn't want to give them another shot and never will, but Daniel keeps doing little things to try and win her back. He's sent her texts asking about her day or seeing if she wants to go to dinner, just the two of them, and he's even sent her flowers on a few occasions ( _just because I miss my girl_  is how he explained it away after she got frustrated with him the last time). She's already made it perfectly clear to him over the past six months that they will never be a couple again. Three breakups will cement that for a girl.

She gives Emma a knowing glance as they take their seats. Emma, being the good friend that she is, sits in between Regina and Daniel. His small huff of annoyance doesn't go unnoticed by either Regina nor her best friend.

As she's taking her seat, Regina spots a certain handsome, sandy blonde, blue-eyed man walking in the doors with his son and nanny in tow.  _Do you see Valerie, yet?!_  she hears squealed over the murmuring crowd of people, making Regina chuckle to herself.

Robin catches her eyes, and they both wave a small hello towards each other as the lights dim, alerting everyone that the play is about the begin.

Looking up to the lights, then back to Robin, she nods her head in indication toward the empty seats on her row, noticing they seem to be looking for three empty chairs, before taking her own seat and grabbing Emma's hand to receive a comforting squeeze from her son's godmother.

{********************}

When they walk in, Robin spots Regina immediately. She's still wearing that black, high waisted pencil skirt and maroon blouse that she had on at their meeting. He can't help but notice how great her figure looks in that skirt.

He also can't help but notice the brown-haired man standing with Regina, with his hand on the small of her back, a small frown gracing Robin's lips. He hadn't noticed a wedding ring earlier, so perhaps it's her boyfriend.  _Damn it._

"What is it?" Tink questions, concern coloring her eyes.

"Nothing. Let's find a good seat."

Robin is pleased that the seats Regina showed them are just a few chairs down from her and her guests. He is even more pleased when, who he assumes is Henry (based on the Prince Charming get up he's sporting), gets on stage and gives his speech about true love and waking his precious Snow with true love's hug (this is elementary school, after all). He's entranced by the way Regina mouths his entire speech along with Henry – obviously, they had practiced more than a few times at home – and how she nods her head and gives him a small thumbs up when he finishes.

{********************}

When the play ends, Roland runs over to his new friend, Regina.

"Hi, Regina!" Roland shrieks, skidding to a stop right before crashing into her legs and grinning up at her.

"Hi, Roland. How did you like the play?" Regina inquires, smiling down at the adorable little boy and brushing her hand over the curls on his forehead out of motherly instinct.

"It was great! Valerie did such a good job as the Evil Queen. She looked so pretty," he replies, his face beaming with young love.

Regina smirks, glancing up towards the boy's father, who is rolling his eyes in amusement and shaking his head at his son's obvious adoration of the little girl.

Before any other introductions can be made, Henry comes running over to the group of people standing around his mom.

"Hey, champ!" Daniel says, ruffling Henry's hair. "You did great!"

"You did wonderful, sweetheart," Regina says, smiling at her son and straightening the freshly ruffled brown hair. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Yeah, kid," Emma says, smiling at her favorite ten year old and pushing her long, blonde hair behind her back. "You did awesome!"

"Thanks guys!" Henry exclaims. Turning to look at the three strangers standing amongst his family, he asks with a curious, furrowed brow, "Who are you?"

Chuckling at her son's bluntness, that she know he inherited straight from her, she tells him, "Henry, this is Roland. He goes here as well, and this is his father, Robin, and his nanny, Tink," Regina states, making the proper introductions.

"Robin, this is my son Henry." Robin and Henry shake hands. Regina smiles, watching her son's face take on a serious look while shaking this new man's hand as firmly as he possibly can. Now that he's a little older, Henry seems to feel the need to show that he can protect his mother from any and all dangers of this world, including strangers. She's noticed that his protective side has heightened since the two of them moved into their own apartment six months ago. It's his way of proving that he's growing up, she thinks, but her heart flutters a little bit and it brings a warm smile to her face each time her baby boy steps up to protect her. Though that one time he tried to step in front of the roll away grocery cart in the Whole Foods parking lot did nearly give her a heart attack and prompted her to have a talk with him about how he doesn't have to protect her from everything. "Henry's father, Daniel, and my best friend, Emma," she says, pointing at everyone as they're introduced, while Robin shakes the hands of the other adults, smiling politely.

"Robin is my newest client, and it just so happens that his son goes to this school, too."

Once all the introductions are made, Regina turns to Robin.

"Well, I think we're going to head out for some celebratory ice cream. But I'll see you next week?"

"Certainly," Robin replies, smiling towards Regina, making her stomach do a flip. "I'll see you then. It was nice meeting all of you, and congratulations, Henry. You did great."

And with that, the three newcomers turn and leave.

Turning back to her family, Regina asks, "So, who's ready for ice cream?"


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright...here's part two! Thanks for all the follows and reviews… makes a girl feel good, lol.
> 
> The part about college might be a stretch as far as the rivalry between schools. I found one source saying they were, but other said they weren't. So...you know... This is fiction, so just go with it! haha.
> 
> As always, please leave a review and let me know what you think. Thanks!
> 
> Thanks to Brooke for the beta - mwah! :)

**Chapter Two**

Robin has been fascinated by Regina since the day she walked into his office. Over the last week, they've talked almost every day, either in person or on the phone, sometimes both. He knows she's a busy, working parent just like he is, so they had come to a mutual understanding during one of their phone calls to talk in the early evenings once their boys had been fed and were occupied with their homework. Their phone conversations started out innocently enough, but he found himself steering the conversations into more personal topics each evening, and she didn't seem to mind. She would answer his questions and ask things of him as well. The phone calls began lasting just a bit longer each night, too. They've started building a friendship that Robin has already come to cherish, and he's interested to see where it takes them. He'd be lying if he said he didn't think of dating her.

" _I can't believe school will be over in a few weeks." He sighs, lowering himself into his covers. They usually talk earlier in the evening, but dinner at his apartment had become quite the spectacle with green beans flying up into the air and a bowl of noodles landing upside down on the kitchen's gray hardwood floor. Regina just happened to call during the cleanup process but had reassured him he was fine and could call her back once he got Roland cleaned and in bed. They didn't talk every night, so he assured her he would definitely give her a ring back once the chaos was settled._

" _I know. This year has gone by really quickly… I just can't believe my baby will be in middle school come August." He hears her sigh, knowing how she feels. Roland will be going to first grade and that alone makes him feel like his boy is growing up far too fast, and he tells her so._

_She giggles, saying, "I know the feeling! I thought when Henry left kindergarten I was going to cry a river. Just wait until Roland is Henry's age. It doesn't get any easier."_

_After sharing a laugh and talking about how hectic the end of the year is going to be, along with a school dance that is coming up, Robin directs the conversation into territory he's actually quite nervous to bring up._

" _So, the play last week was wonderful." He hears her hum in agreement. "Henry did a great job. It was nice that your friend could be there to support him."_

" _Oh, Emma?" She says, apparently settling into her bed as he hears what sounds like sheets and covers rustling. The image of her in bed not helping his current situation. "Yeah, Em has been my best friend for years. She's actually Henry's godmother and usually goes to any and all school functions with us."_

_Us._

" _You and Henry's father?" He questions, a knot forming in the pit of his stomach. He shouldn't be so nervous to find out if his interior designer is single or not, but, well, she's beautiful and they get along and he would love to get to know her on a more personal level._

" _Mmhmm, Daniel." She states, not providing any more information. She's not making this easy on him and he briefly wonders if she's doing it on purpose. He imagines her laying in bed with a smirk on her face, waiting for him to just come out and ask her his question._

_He finally takes a deep breath and rushes out a "So, I noticed you didn't introduce him as your husband, are the two of you just dating or what?"_

_A slight pause and then he hears her failing miserably to conceal a slightly airy giggle as she tells him, "No, never married. We were together for quite a while, but I broke things off with him about six months ago."_

_He can hear the smile in her voice and he's glad she isn't completely thrown off by the inquisition._

_He ahh's and adds a flirtatious, "glad to hear it," before quickly moving on to a safe topic before she can call him out on his blatant flirtation._

_He turns the conversation back to work for a few minutes, discussing things he might like to see in his office and getting her opinion on them._

_They finish the later than usual phone call with a, "It's been lovely talking to you. Get some sleep and I'll see you tomorrow." At her whispered, "Goodnight, Robin," he hangs up the phone and falls into a blissful sleep._

Pulling himself from thoughts of their phone conversation last night, Robin sits at his desk, clicking around on the print design for his baby bubble bath campaign. His graphic designer sent the first draft of print ads over this morning, so he tries to look at as much of it as he can before Regina arrives to show him her designs. The prints look good - there's just enough detail to really grab a customer's attention without being too overwhelming to the senses. Robin was very pleased with how it was going so far. The ad featured a precious baby in the tub, covered in bubbles and donning a bubble beard and a large, toothy smile. There was also a yellow rubber duck sitting next to a oversized bottle of  _Sleep Tight_ on the tub's edge, but clearly the focus of the advertisement based on the angle of the photograph. The print was almost perfect, it just needed a few tweaks here and there. This was their biggest project to date and if all went well, he'd be able to start looking into buying the empty floor beneath him and hiring more helping hands to expand his clientele.

Robin is so enthralled with making small adjustments to the campaign that he almost forgot Regina was coming for a minute. Almost.

{***************************}

Regina finds herself riding the elevator again up to the twenty-third floor to Locksley Advertising. It's been a week since she first met Robin and she's been able to redesign a lot of his office space in that short amount of time, despite all her other projects she is overseeing. There's Dr. Whale's office, which she put her employee, Ariel, in charge of because the doctor is far too annoying for Regina to deal with on a daily basis (and Ariel, sweet as she is, bothers her, too, so she figured Ariel and the doctor would get along great). She's also in charge of a local hair studio that has hired her to redesign their waiting area and an old snocone shop that claims they need the inside spruced up to draw in more customers before the business dies. She's busy, and she loves it.

She has not been able to stop thinking about Robin, or his dimples, since they first met. Designing his office space isn't helping either, since that, quite literally, requires her to think about him.

It also requires her to talk to him frequently on the phone to go over small details in the design. It was during these phone calls that Regina found Robin asking questions about her life, which she in return, would ask him. They were getting to know each other on more than a business level. She would ask about Roland, and they would chat about the happenings at their son's school. After awhile, it wasn't just their children they spoke of, but of aspirations they had for their businesses and things they enjoyed in their personal lives. Robin had innocently inquired about her relationship with Daniel one night, which she quickly explained away with a horribly concealed giggle and a smile on her face (that he obviously couldn't see, but she was sure he could hear), saying they were exes and just friends. A friendship between Regina and her client, and perhaps an attraction of some sort, was beginning to blossom.

Either way, Regina knows she's not ready to date just yet, it's only been six months since she finally ended her twelve year on and off again relationship with Daniel, and she will not allow herself to date a client. As much as she may want to.

_Ding_.  _Level 23._

"Henry, I want you to wait here in the lobby while I speak with Robin about my designs, ok?" Regina asks, running her hand through Henry's hair, thinking the medicine she gave him earlier after the nurse called to say he had a fever, was helping him feel worlds better. Henry only gives her a nod of his head in compliance and takes a seat in one of the metal chairs in the waiting area.

Smiling and giving Belle a slight nod of her head, Regina makes her way down the empty hallway toward the main office.

"Sorry, I'm late," Regina starts to say, walking into Robin's office in a hurry. "The school called earlier saying Henry had a fever. I had to bring him with me, but don't worry," she holds up her hand in surrender, "he's going to stay in the lobby while we look over these designs." Regina finishes with a huff, feeling frazzled at the new development to her work day.

"Regina." Robin walks toward her with a sympathetic look in his eyes. He looks handsome today in his charcoal gray slacks and crisp, white button up. He looks good,  _damn_  good, but she shouldn't be thinking about that right now. Or at all. Especially when her son is down the hall, not feeling well. "It's quite alright. Roland is actually here with me today, too. He has a fever as well. He's in one of the offices waiting on Tink to arrive."

"Must be something going around the school, then," Regina starts, furrowing her brow. "I've got your designs here. Are you ready to see them?" she asks while pulling the design from her work bag that is thrown over her shoulder. She's always beyond prepared to meet with a client, but when you get a call from your child's school saying they're sick, all logic goes out the window. She had rushed out of her office to get to Henry, and, thankfully, still remembered to grab Robin's designs at the last second as she hurried out of the door, flustered mess that she was. Luckily, the nurse had called in plenty of time for her to get to Henry's school and back across town to Robin's office in just enough time for their meeting (though she's positive he would have understood any excessive tardiness on her part, had it come to that). She's not late by any means, right on time actually, but she's always lived by the  _to be early is to be on time, to be on time is to be late_  moto, so she feels guilty for making him wait (although, logically, she knows he  _hasn't_  been waiting…). Nonetheless, she currently feels rushed, and a little overwhelmed, but Robin's empathetic smile helps her to relax a little.

"Of course," Robin smiles, "Let's have a look."

They walk over to the large conference table where Regina lays out her new designs for all of his offices.

"Now, this isn't finalized," Regina gives him a wary look, "So this is the time to tell me if you don't like something or you want something changed. It's easier to fix it now, while it's just a drawing, rather than when we've already brought in furniture and everything."

"Alright," Robin says, glancing over her designs.

Regina has designed an office space that is very functional. Robin wanted the transitional design, so she had drawn up sketches of clean lines but with a warm and welcoming feel. She's incorporated glass and iron elements to make it feel more masculine, while throwing in warm paint colors and slightly more comfortable chairs than what already exists in his office. It's a big project - Robin's office, which is the biggest space to redo, along with the waiting area and ten other offices will take some time. She also mentioned during on of their phone calls wanting to spruce up the hallway a little as well, which he agreed was a good idea.

"This looks wonderful. There is one thing I want to keep, however." He points to a painting of a forest with a small stream on the right side of the canvas hanging on the wall behind them.

"My late wife, Marian, picked that out to go in my very first office, and ever since she passed, I just can't part with it. It's sort of like a good luck charm." He smiles fondly at the painting.

"Oh," Regina says, feeling stunned at the revelation of Robin being a widower. She knew Roland's mother wasn't in the picture because he had never really mentioned her before, but she had assumed it was a bad divorce or something far less heartbreaking than that, so she had never willingly brought her up in conversation. "I understand. It's sentimental to you. So, it stays," Regina finishes, a small smile on her face.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now," Regina smooths her hands over her black slacks and turns to look at his large office, "that desk." She points to the large, clunky desk that she's hated since the moment she walked in his office last week. "It should be the first thing to go," she finishes with a smirk and the lift of one eyebrow.

"Yes," Robin chuckles, lightly touching Regina's elbow as he walks over to the desk, sending a shiver down her spine. "It most certainly does."

"I always suggest two things to my clients when it comes to picking out new furniture," she explains, running her manicured hand along the edge of the desk and eyeing an adorable picture of Robin and Roland next to his computer. Roland looks to be a few years younger in the picture but has a huge smile on his face as he hangs upside down in his father's arms. She can practically hear the young boy's laughter coming through the photograph. It's precious and brings a warm smile to her face. "You can either go with me and pick everything out for yourself, or you can leave it up to my designing judgement."

"Hmm," Robin hums, bringing his hand up to rub the back of his neck. He turns his eyes up from the picture, which also seems to have caught his attention, to her eyes and says, "I think I'd like to go with you, if it's alright?"

"Sure thing," Regina smiles, collecting her designs from the table and placing them back into her leather satchel. She's relieved that Robin didn't suggest any major changes, not that she would have minded, but the hand drawn design is her least favorite part of her job. She likes it, doesn't really mind it because it's necessary to perfecting the design space (and she's quite the talented artist), but she loves actually physically designing a space so much more. She likes the flow of Robin's offices and is excited to get to work in them (plus that means she gets to see Robin in person on a more regular basis, but she isn't thinking about that). "We can look over our schedules and pick a day that works for both of us. I'd suggest we go sooner rather than later so that I can input the measurements into my design on the computer. That way I have a better idea of where the smaller furniture – like lamps and what not – can go."

"Alright," Robin leads Regina out of his office, placing his hand on the small of her back. "Let me look over my schedule and I'll text you. How does that sound?"

"Sounds wonderful." She smiles as Robin opens the door for her, leading them out of his office.

{***********************}

As the two exit the main office and make their way down the hallway toward the lobby, they hear fits of giggles.

"Looks like someone is feeling better," Robin laughs, causing the two boys to look up from Henry's iPad as Robin and Regina enter the lobby.

"I am, Papa!" Roland giggles, his brown curls bouncing all around. "Henry was showing me how to play Panda Pop." His face dives back into the iPad, far closer than he needs to be, as he makes  _pop_  noises with his mouth over and over again. It causes Henry (and Roland) to laugh, which brings a smile to her and Robin's faces.

Regina walks over to Henry and places the back of her hand to his forehead, followed by a quick peck.

"Well, it feels like your fever has gone down, so that's good."

Henry doesn't get sick often, he's always had a pretty strong immune system. So when he does catch something, he's normally curled up in bed with blankets, tissues and video games and doesn't want to leave. Coming with her today had been inevitable, and she thought for certain he'd be sleeping in one of the chairs by now waiting on her, so she's pleasantly surprised to find he seems to be acting at least somewhat like a normal Henry.

"Yeah, I feel a lot better now, Mom," Henry states, pushing his hair to the side of his forehead. His forehead is a bit sweaty, but she hopes that's due to his medicine pushing his fever out of him.

"Well, since we're all out and feeling better, it seems," Robin starts, standing from where he had been crouched down, checking his son's forehead for a fever as well, "Why don't we grab a quick lunch? I can call Tink and push back Roland's pick up time by an hour."

"Oh, I don't know," Regina begins to decline, shaking her head. Her son is sick, after all, and spending time with Robin and his adorable son probably isn't the best idea when she's trying to deny to herself that she's attracted to this man.

"Come on, Mom!" Henry whines, standing and collecting his iPad into his hands. "Roland and I were almost to the end of this level. I'm feeling better, and I need to eat, right?" Henry reasons.

Regina smirks, wondering where he got his ability to bargain so well from, as if she didn't know the answer to that _._

"Yeah!" Roland agrees, jumping into his father's muscular arms. "We have to beat the level. Please, Miss Regina?" Roland asks, turning his puppy dog eyes over toward her.

Feeling outnumbered, Regina huffs a small breath, while trying to cover a small grin.

"I guess I don't have much of a choice." Regina smiles, letting her shoulders lift and fall.

Robin smiles, too, biting on his lower lip.  _God,_  he really needs to stop biting that lip; it does things to her that she keeps reminding herself she's not allowed to feel.

{**************************}

Regina finds herself sitting in a booth at Granny's Diner (Henry's favorite place to eat). Next to her sits her handsome, British accented client, while her son and this man's equally adorable, dimpled faced son sit together playing their game.

The boys decide it will be easier to play the game if they are sitting next to each other, which of course, leaves Regina sitting next to this gorgeous man that she absolutely can not be attracted to.

"So," Robin starts after they order their drinks – water for Regina and Henry, Diet Coke for Robin, and water downed apple juice for Roland (it has too much sugar for his little body otherwise). "How did you get into interior design?" Robin turns slightly to face Regina in the booth, his knee brushing up against hers.

"Well," Regina says, all too aware of their knees touching. She recalls how she was always rearranging furniture in her Barbie Dream House as a child and tells him about secretly moving her bedroom furniture around when her mother was out of town for the weekends, "I always had to move it back before she came home, but I was always dreaming of ways I could redo my room and every other room in the house." Regina smiles fondly at the memory, but tries to suppress the sadness at her mother never giving her freedom to rearrange her bedroom as she pleased. Mother was always a bit controlling. Her dad was always the one who encouraged her to go after her dreams. When mother was out of town, her dad would peek in on her new room designs and tell her she had a real gift for designing. Every so often, her father, Henry, whom she'd lovingly named her son after, would help her rearrange the living room furniture, too, when her mother, Cora, was away on business. They'd sit and eat cookies (something else not usually allowed in the living room), laugh and watch movies until he father declared it was time to put it all back to normal. It was always their little secret, and she loved it. She's pretty sure to this day, her father has never spilled their secret to her mother.

"What about you?" Regina questions, changing the subject. "How did you get into advertising?"

Regina listens as Robin explains how his third grade teacher had them come up with an advertisement for a cereal brand they'd invented. He tells her he loved the whole project, and after that, he was always looking for things to make commercials for around his house. One time, he recalls, he came up with a whole advertising campaign for his mother's perfume bottle.

"You know," Robin explains, "every good advertiser  _tries_  all of his products so that he can really sell it – even the girly products like perfume or lipstick," he says with a wide smirk.

Regina laughs at the thought of a young Robin testing out his mother's perfume, just so he could draw up an advertisement for it.

"I'm sure your parents were surprised to find you smelling like perfume."

"Oh, my father was quite perplexed when he came home from work to a floral scented ten year old." Robin laughs at the memory. Regina likes the sound of his throaty laugh and finds herself captivated by the sound of it.

Once their food is ordered, the conversation continues to flow smoothly. The boys are getting along and have finally beaten their troublesome level, while Robin and Regina continue discussing all aspects of their lives. Along with discovering how the other came into their respective professions, they also discuss their college years, and the difficulties of trying to start your own business.

"I transferred to New York School of Interior Design after a year at Columbia." Regina tells him. "What about you?"

"Well, I graduated from Penn State," causing Regina's face to scrunch up in slight, good natured disdain, bringing out a chuckle from Robin as he continues, "before moving up here to be closer to Marian."

"What about the British thing?" She laughs, bringing her hair to hang over one shoulder and take a bite of her barbeque hamburger. They're her guilty pleasure, and Granny's makes the best one in town so anytime they eat here, she  _has_  to get one, calories be damned. "When did you move here?"

After an  _ahh,_  he tells her that he grew up in London, but moved to the states when he was a junior in high school. "The move was hard since I was having to leave all of my friends behind," he takes a bite of his own hamburger (he had told her after the first bite that she was right to recommend the delicious, gourmet beef and that everyone should experience this burger at least once in their lives), "but my mum got a better job here so my dad agreed that we should make the move."

He tells her he was upset at first, as any seventeen year old kid would be, but he quickly came to make lots of new friends and found he actually quite liked America. It was, after all, where he met the mother of his child.

Regina tells him she can relate. Her mother had moved the family to New York from a small town in Maine when Regina was in middle school. "I thought I was never going to make friends in such a big city," she states, "but I just had to get used to my school and then I started opening up to people. It was hard, being twelve and leaving the only friends I had ever known, but I settled in within the first few months."

It seems she has more and more in common with Robin than she thought.  _Fantastic_.

After their food is eaten, the adults had eaten every last bit of their barbeque burgers, while the boys managed to eat a good portion of their grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, the four of them continue to sit there chatting amicably. Henry has snagged a handful of her leftover sweet potato fries, but she doesn't mind. An appetite must mean he's feeling better, at least for now, which she is thankful for. And if she's being honest with herself, she is not quite ready to leave this luncheon so soon, so Henry can eat as many of her fries and he wants to. She's having a great time and finds herself wanting to hear Robin talk about… anything. He could read the phone book and she thinks she'd listen.

{****************************}

It's rare that you find people who figure out what they want to do at a young age and go after it.

Robin had always known he wanted to be in advertisement – ever since Mrs. Brogdon made them come up with advertisements for cereal.

He listens as Regina talks about rearranging furniture in her Barbie Dream House, a small smile on his face at the visual of a little Regina doing just that. He also listens as she tells him about moving her bedroom furniture around while her mother was out of town. He sees her smiling about that, but can also tell there's a bit of… sadness, perhaps, behind those expressive eyes. He longs to know this woman more and find out just what that look is all about.

Robin finds himself wanting to know about all aspects of Regina's life, more than the fact that she grew up in Maine and went to Columbia university.

"I won't hold it against you too much that you went to Columbia," he tells her, causing her eyes to widen in mock shock and her hand to playfully swat his shoulder.

She scoffs a good natured, "Gee, thanks," in his direction before giggling and smiling over at him. He smiles right back, liking this playful banter they're engaging in.

The boys, meanwhile, are finishing their soups and sandwiches before diving back into the iPad. They haven't had much to say during the lunch, hardly answering their parent's questions throughout, leaving Robin and Regina to make conversation just between the two of them. Robin makes a mental note to charge Roland's iPad when he gets home so his boy can work on his Sushi Math Monster and Sight Word Ninja apps when he wakes up from his inevitable afternoon nap.

Continuing to contemplate the woman who sits next to him, Robin wonders  _What was her life like growing up? How did she meet Henry's father? What's the story there with that relationship? Does she date clients? What?_

When she mentioned earlier that his offices may take some time to redo, he can't say he was upset about it. He's not worried, has total confidence in her and if this project takes her a few months to get done, well, who can blame him for being happy about that? Most people want their renovations done in a timely manner, but he can confidently say he wants her to take as much time as possible.

He is definitely attracted to Regina. How could he not be? He's been slightly distracted ever since she walked into his office this morning wearing a royal blue top that dips down just slightly in the front – which revealed a small amount of cleavage when she bent over the conference table to point to something in her design. Her hair is pulled halfway up today, and he notes how beautiful it is like that. It showcases her stunning face. Realizing he's been lost to his thoughts about her beauty, he shakes his head, reminding himself to  _focus._

"I'm sorry, what?" Robin is shaken from his thoughts of Regina at the sound of her calling his name.

"I said are you ready?" Regina asks, showing him his bill that still sits on the table, slightly smiling and tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.

_Am I ready? No._

"Sure," Robin replies reluctantly, pulling out his wallet and placing his debit card on top of his bill.

"It's all on me," Robin tells the waitress when she comes to collects the cards.

"Robin, no," Regina starts to refuse, slightly shaking her head and pulling out her own card, causing the boys to look up in curiosity. "I've got mine and Henry's. It's alright."

"I insist," He says, handing the waitress both bills with only his card, "You're working so hard to redo my office, it's the least I can do," Robin smiles.

Hesitantly, Regina agrees, placing her card back into her wallet. He can tell she feels uneasy, but he wants to do this for her. She  _had_  just recommended the most delicious burger he's ever tasted. It's the least he could do. "Alright, but the next lunch is on me." She smiles.

"Fantastic," Robin smirks, delighted that she's already planning another lunch.

{**************************}

_Next lunch is on me_.  _Really, Regina?_  Regina mentally kicks herself for insinuating that there would  _be_  another lunch.

Once the lunches are paid for, the four of them step out into the warm, spring air.

Just then, Henry let's out a mucus coated cough, thankfully coughing into his elbow like he's been taught so he doesn't spread germs as much. Regina rushes to feel his forehead again.

"I think the medicine is wearing off," Regina explains, looking over her shoulder towards Robin, who is picking up an obviously exhausted Roland as the boy buries his nose into his father's neck. "I better get him home."

"Yeah," Robin says, understanding, but not wanting their time together to end already. "Tink will be at the office soon anyway to take this one home," he hoist Roland up just a fraction, causing him to turn his head so he can peek out from under his curls in Regina and Henry's direction.

"Alright, well," Regina takes her work bag from one shoulder and slings across her body, "Thanks again for lunch. I'll see you in a few days so we can go pick out some furniture."

"Yes," Robin smiles. "Sounds lovely. Take care. I hope you feel better, Henry."

"Thanks, Robin." Henry says, suddenly sounding like he's ready for a nap of his own and sniffling for good measure. "Bye, Roland!"

"Bye, Henry!" Roland says, a cough of his own escaping his lips.

Robin and Regina give each other knowing glances – knowing both the boy's medicines are wearing off and they need to get home to sleep off their colds.

"See you later," Robin says, taking a chance, he leans over and gives Regina peck to her cheek.

Regina blushes slightly. "Goodbye, Robin," she says, giving him a small smile and pushing her hair back behind her shoulders. The feel of his lips on her cheek was unexpected, but not disliked. She cannot, however, help the images of his soft lips on her lips (and neck) that come to her mind with just a simple peck to the cheek.

Placing her arm around Henry, the two walk away in the opposite direction of Roland and his handsome father, making their way back to Regina's car.

The whole drive home, Regina is lost in her thoughts about Robin – his eyes, his voice, his lips on her cheek…. This is  _bad_ , Regina decides. She cannot be attracted to him. He's a client. And she's not ready to date anyway, but damn he is handsome.

{**************************}

_Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it…if you want, leave a review and let me know :)_


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's part 3. Hope you enjoy...As always, please leave a review on here and let me know what you think so far. Thanks!
> 
> Thanks again to Shay for her input and Brooke for the beta :)

**Chapter Three**

Robin and Regina have talked several times over the last few days. They had been trying to find a day that both their schedules would allow for furniture shopping. Robin was busy with his latest advertisement project,  _Sleep Tight_ , the up and coming calming baby bubble bath, while Regina has been busy with three other design projects.

They both have employees that can handle these projects, but they like to be involved with all aspects of the businesses they run, so finding down time during the week proved to be challenging.

During their last phone conversation, Robin had suggested they go on Saturday. He reasoned that they could take the boys with them since they seemed to get along so well, despite their five year age gap.

" _They can keep each other entertained while we pick out furniture,"_  is how Robin had pitched the idea to Regina, making her feel like she was one of  _his_  clients. Turns out, he is quite good at advertising.

That's how Robin finds himself walking into Enchanted Furniture on a warm, slightly breezy, Saturday afternoon with Roland, and two coffees, in tow.

Even though it's a weekend, he still wants to look semi-professional, he is somewhat working after all. So, he chose to wear dark wash jeans and a gray button up shirt that has light blue checkered into it. If he just happens to know that gray brings out his blue eyes, which several women have pointed out to him over the years, and he may have wanted Regina to notice, well, who can blame him?

"Roland," Robin says as the pair make their way into the store, "I need you to be on your best behavior today, son. This is not a store for children to run around in. Papa needs to pick out some furniture for his office." He kneels down to get to eye level with Roland and sets down his coffees to straighten a button on his son's shirt, "If you behave, I might just stop by the park on the way home and  
let you play for a bit. How does that sound, hmm?"

He knows bribing small children isn't always the best way to parent, but Roland had a good week at school and deserves a little reward anyway.

"Yeah!" Roland squeals as his father laughs and ruffles his hair.

Just then, Robin spots Regina and Henry walking in. He can't help but notice how nice she looks, professional, yet casual. He likes this look on her.

She's wearing dark, skinny leg jeans, a sheer, deep violet blouse that ties in the front with a black tank top underneath. She topped it off with a lightweight black jacket, and she has her hair down. Her hair sits just below her shoulders, and he often finds himself wondering what it would feel like to run his fingers through her silky locks.

Robin waves as Regina and Henry approach.

"Good morning." Robin takes a sip of his coffee and hands another steaming cup to Regina. "I wasn't sure how you take your coffee," he shrugs, "but I hope it's ok."

He had stopped by the nearest coffee shop on his way to the store with Roland. He knew getting up and dragging a kid out of the house earlier than normal (for him anyway, he and Roland normally didn't leave the house until around lunchtime on Saturdays and they were meeting Regina at ten), could be somewhat of a challenge, and he wanted to thank Regina for her commitment to his project. He also just wanted to do something nice for her. He was completely unsure about buying the coffee in the first place, but the smile on her face as she accepts the brew tells him that he was right to buy it.

She inhales the rich aroma and takes a cautious sip – it's black with just a little bit of creamer in it. In his hurry to get to the store, he had fixed her coffee the same way he takes his. Halfway to Enchanted Furniture, however, he remembered her making a comment one time about drinking black coffee and loving it despite what her employees said. He mentally kicked himself but hoped she still found the gesture sweet.

"It's perfect." She smiles brightly, "Thank you." She takes another small sip before her eyes slide down to Roland.

"Good morning, Regina!"

"Good morning, Roland." She smiles down at the boy. "You look quite handsome today," she says, running her fingers through his brown curls.

Roland is in dark jeans that almost match his father's and a blue, red and dark green checkered button up shirt. When Regina looks back up, Robin is looking at her with a small smile on his face. He finds her natural mothering abilities so attractive, and he is once again blown away by her effortless beauty.

Regina clears her throat and tucks her hair behind her ear, "So, I think we should start over on the left side. They tend to have more transitional furniture over there."

"Sounds good," Robin says, placing a hand on Roland's shoulder, "lead the way."

{***********************}

"I want you boys to stay close by," Regina instructs the two young children as they approach the transitional office furniture section. Turning to Robin, Regina explains, "We need to find a desk that is sleek and streamline, but not too modern."

"Why don't you boys go test out those office chairs?" Regina turns to face the boys and points toward the multiple rows of different office chairs, most of which spin and swivel, just a few feet from the desks Robin is currently looking at.

"Ok!" The boys say in unison, rushing over to sit, and spin, in all the large chairs.

Regina turns around, smirking at their son's antics, and starts looking over the desk selection with Robin.

The pair split off for a few moments, each looking at different types of desks, every now and then signaling to each other with a thumbs up or down.

Enchanted Furniture is her go to place to find office furnishings because they offer such a large selection. In the area she's roaming, she sees different types of desk – some she doesn't think quite fit in the transitional style, but she'll just skip over those. There are light colored wooden desks, some more sleek than others, and several metal desks. She knows she needs to find a desk that has the iron elements to match her design scheme for Robin's office.

After a while of looking through all of the desks, Regina thinks it's a bit too quiet and goes in search of the boys.

She finds them sitting in two large, black leather chairs playing Sight Word Bingo on Henry's iPad. Thankful that her son, as the natural leader of their duo, hasn't led them to make too big of a mess within all the office chairs (although she notices several chairs are no longer facing the same direction as all the others, so she knows they definitely played around for a while before settling down). There are other people shopping today, after all, and she trusts Henry not to cause too much trouble.

Grinning, Regina turns back around to the desk section and immediately sees Robin leaning up against a sleek, glass top desk with wrought-iron legs that make an "X" in the middle, smirking at her. The iron detail makes her think it would be a great option for his new desk.

Her steps falter slightly at first, however, and her eyes widen for a split second. Robin is leaning up against that desk, ankles crossed and holding his coffee cup. He's got a smirk on his face and  _damn_ , he looks sexy.

Looking at him, Regina can't help that her initial thought upon seeing him is how thrilling it would be for Robin to take her and ravish her so completely on top of that glass desk. Surely it has a high weight limit – it could hold both of them.

Pulling herself from her inappropriately thrilling fantasy, Regina takes a deep breath and walks over to Robin.

"Is this the one you like?" she questions, pointing to the desk he's still perched upon.

"I'm not sure." He stands from the desk and clears his throat. "There's one over here that I like as well." He moves slightly to the left, grabbing Regina's elbow and turning her to see the other desk.

A shiver runs down Regina's spine when he touches her elbow, just like it did in his office the other day.  _Damn him._

Robin points to a larger, metal desk. It's a little too modern for Regina's envisioned transitional office, and the glass desk would probably look better in her design, but if that's what he wants…

"This one is much larger, though, so I'm not sure. What do you think?" Robin asks, pulling Regina from her thoughts.

"I like it." She apprehensively shrugs a shoulder up. "I like them both. Which one do you prefer?"

Robin chuckles. "I like them both as well." He smiles at Regina and sipping his coffee, tells her, "That's why I need a professional's opinion."

Regina lets out her own small chuckle. "Alright then," She turns towards the glass and wrought-iron desk, "I think this one is best for your office space. It's got the iron element that I'm trying to incorporate."

"Then that's the one we'll get," he concedes, walking back toward the glass desk.

Smiling triumphantly and walking to catch up with him, she says, "Perfect."

{**************************}

He's never quite enjoyed shopping as he has today.

He wasn't sure exactly what type of desk Regina wanted for his office, so he aimlessly wandered about the desks, picking out the ones he thought looked good.

After playing their amusing thumbs up, thumbs down game, and getting lost in her chocolate brown eyes, Robin found himself having a highly inappropriate fantasy of being on his knees, head in between her legs, staring up into those gorgeous brown eyes as she sits bare assed on top of that very same desk that she decided was perfect for his office.

Once they made their way out of the furniture store, and saying their goodbyes, Robin loads Roland into the car. He's old enough now that he can buckle his own car seat, which has proven to save loads of time for Robin.

"Was I good at the store, Papa?" His son asks from the back seat, slipping his headphones on while Robin reaches behind himself to press the play button on his 4-Runner's DVD player.

Smiling at Roland through the rearview mirror, he tells him, "You most certainly were, my boy!" Remembering his promise from earlier, he says, "What do you say we go to the park for a little bit?"

With Roland's squeal of delight and  _yeah!_  he laughs and heads towards the park.

It's a beautiful, warm day. Perfect for the park. Robin had stopped on the way to the playground to pick them up some sandwiches from the grocery store. They stayed at Enchanted Furniture longer than anticipated, and it was nearing lunch time. He knew if Roland was going to enjoy the park without having a meltdown, that he would also need food.

"Stay on the swings where I can see you while I get the food out!" Robin calls as Roland runs towards the swings. They got lucky today, there doesn't seem to be too many other families out. As he pulls their turkey and cheese subs from their packages, he wonders if maybe more parents will bring their kids out later, after lunch perhaps.

Once the food has been placed on top of their napkins (he's leaving them wrapped up until Roland is ready to eat so the bugs don't swarm to the food), and the tiny water bottles are brought out, Robin sits with his back against the tabletop to watch his son play for a little bit. Hearing his son's giggles and  _Papa! Look!_ 's always bring a smile to his face. He looks so much like his mother in these moments that it makes his heart clench.

"Mind if we join you?" A boy's voice interrupts his thoughts. Smiling, he turns his head to see Henry and Regina approaching. She's still in those skinny jeans and purple top from earlier, but he's glad to see she's shed her jacket. It has warmed up somewhat since they left their apartments this morning, and he's even had to roll up his shirt's sleeves.

"Of course not, please sit." He smiles, moving over a little bit and sliding their sandwiches down to make room for her bag of food.

Sitting beside him, Regina takes Henry's outstretched bottle of water from his hand before he runs off to join Roland on the swings. "Looks like we had the same idea," she grins, placing the water bottle behind her on the table and then turning to watch the boys.

"I told Henry if he was well behaved at the store, then we could come here. Is that terrible of me?" She playfully grimaces. "Bribing my own kid?"

Laughing, Robin reassures her, "definitely not. Why do you think we're here?"

Sharing a chuckle, they turn their heads to watch their sons for a little bit. The swings aren't too far away, just a few dozen feet from where they sit, so they know the boys are perfectly safe without them standing directly by their sides. The park isn't overly crowded, anyway, there's only three other families here, so he knows they're fine.

After a few moments of companionable silence, just watching Henry and Roland run around (they'd hoped off the swings and began chasing each other around the playground equipment), Robin speaks up. "I had a lot of fun today, surprisingly."

At the lift of her eyebrows, he realizes how that might have sounded. Rubbing the back of his neck and sighing, he sheepishly chuckles, "Not like that. I just meant I didn't realize picking out furniture could be so entertaining."

Letting out a breathy laugh, she agrees and tells him it was fun. "One of the more enjoyable experiences I've had shopping with a client. You'd be surprised at how pushy some people can be when I pick something for my design that they don't like."

"Well, I can't imagine anyone not trusting your judgement." He leans a little closer to her and nudges her shoulder with his while winking in her direction, "You're quite good at what you do."

Shyly smiling, she turns, swinging her legs to be under the table, and starts unpacking her and Henry's lunches. She's brought a premade grilled chicken salad with spinach leaves for her and a turkey and cheese sub, on wheat bread and a bed of lettuce with some pickles and tomatoes, for Henry.

"He'll eat all that on a sandwich?" he asks incredulously, knowing Roland wouldn't touch lettuce with a ten foot pole.

She laughs, telling him, "Oh, yeah. Henry loves lettuce and all sorts of vegetables."

At his  _wow, I'm impressed_ , she smiles and tell him how Henry used to hate eating things like that but she kept insisting he try, and one day he magically tried lettuce and liked it. "Ever since then, he's tried all types of vegetables and has ended up liking most of them, thankfully."

"Hmm," he hums, "maybe I'll have to try that with Roland, just force him to try them all."

They both laugh as she tells him, "well, don't be  _too_  forceful with it, but yes, make him try as much as possible. You never know what he might like." She smiles over to the boys before adding, "I was rather impressed with Henry's taste buds when he started tasting new foods. I think he might even like more vegetables than I do!"

She sets their food out next to his and Roland's sandwiches, placing the boy's food on the same side of the table, telling him she's positive Roland will insist upon sitting next to Henry, which he wholeheartedly agrees with.

"We should probably call the boys over the eat before they start having too much fun and don't want to stop," she sniggers, pulling her hair over to one shoulder.

He agrees, cupping his hands to call for the boys to come eat. At their twin  _coming!_  Robin turns around to open his water bottle and take a sip as their sweaty, red faced boys join them, chugging their own water down.

"Don't drink it all too fast, you'll get a tummy ache." Regina reminds both boys, opening her water and taking a sip.

"Yes, ma'am," Henry says, causing Roland to echo the sentiment.

Smiling at the boys, Robin begins to unwrap Roland's sandwich and open his small pretzel bag, while Regina pulls out a miniature bottle of hand sanitizer and gives each boy a squirt.

The four of them eat their lunches, laughing and talking about all the crazy furniture they passed in the store, Roland commenting on all the cool kitchen setups they had seen.

"That one kitchen had fish scales on the wall!" Roland exclaims, causing the three of them to chuckle at the boy's surprise.

"Not exactly," Regina laughs, going on to explain to him, "some people like what's called a modern style. That wall, called a back splash, was just made up of nothing but shimmery, silver tiles. But it  _did_  look like fish scales, didn't it?"

"Sure did! Papa, can we have fish scales in our kitchen?"

Laughing, Robin tells him it wouldn't quite go with the style of their house, causing the boy's shoulders to slump and give a defeated  _ok_  in response.

"What does your kitchen look like?" Regina turns to look at Robin instead of their sons. He tells her how his kitchen is a bit of everything, that once he and Roland were on their own, they kind of used what Marian had at their old house, mixed with elements that were given to them from their friends. He tells her his tile is gray, but looks like hardwood floor, which she says is quite common these days and she loves (and also has at her apartment), his cabinets are black and his appliances are stainless steel.

"It all looks very, I guess you'd say, modern or… transitional," grinning in her direction at his new design lingo he's been learning, "on the outside, but the details are what don't all go together, I suppose. None of our dishes match, except the set we got for our wedding, and my appliances didn't all come from the same store, they were just all sort of inherited from different friends." He chuckles, telling her, "it sounds chaotic, but I promise it all goes well together." Nodding toward Roland and asking his son to back up his claim.

"Oh," she says, holding her hand up in mock surrender, "I believe it! You have, what sounds like, a very typical kitchen. The main elements all go together, but inside the cabinets is where the real personality is." She giggles, telling him that is more than normal, most people have kitchens like that.

They go on to talk about how her apartment is also decorated in the transitional style, because it's her favorite. She says her kitchen and living room are an open concept so they flow right into each other (he says his do as well). She loves the gray and beige color scheme because she can add pops of color in each room, but she mainly sticks with teals or other calming blue hues, nothing too bright or outlandish.

"Except in my room!" Henry chimes in, telling them how Regina let him choose how his room got decorated. "It's all super heros right now!"

Henry tells the group how his bedspread is blue and red, and he has Captain America pillows. He also has a poster of just about every superhero possible hanging up on his wall. Roland's eyes bulge out at that, claiming he wants to see that one day (Robin just  _knows_  his son will be asking for a super hero room, too, as soon as they get home.) The boy says he's thinking of changing it soon to something else, but he hasn't quite decided what that will be, which causes Regina's eyebrows to move toward her hairline as she claims they  _just_  finished finding all the posters he wanted.

Henry gives her a sly grin and shrugs his shoulder, claiming, "I'm a growing boy, Mom. My mind changes like every other week."

Rolling her eyes playfully, she tells him, "which is exactly why we will be keeping the hero themed room for a while," she points her fork in Henry's direction and smiles, saying, "maybe you can talk to your dad about redoing your room there since you haven't done that since you were younger."

Once their food has been eaten, the boys run back to the playground to hop onto a metal dome and hang upside down from it, laughing the whole time.

"They really do get along well," Regina notes, standing to throw their trash away as Robin collects their plastic bottles to place in the community recycle bin.

"They really do," Robin agrees, "Henry is great with Roland."

At Regina's beaming smile, she concurs, saying that Henry has always been great with other kids.

Tentatively, he says, "We should maybe let them get together again on a weekend and let them play."

"Definitely. As long as it's not a weekend that Henry is with his father, then we should be able to work it out," nodding her head, she beams, "I think the boys would love that."

The boys aren't the only one that's would love that. He's glad he bribed his son with going to park today, after all.

{*************************}

The following Monday, Regina is hard at work designing a sleek, modern living room for one client, a farmhouse kitchen for another couple who are having her redo their entire mansion, and putting some finishing touches on Robin's offices, when a knock sounds at her door.

She looks up to see Robin walking in.

He looks good today, wearing a navy suit with a pale blue button up underneath and a navy tie. Classic. Sexy.

"Robin," Regina stands from her desk, straightening some papers and smiling, "What are you doing here? I was just working on the computer design of your office."

"Fantastic," Robin smiles, walking towards her, "But that's not what I'm here about."

"Oh," Regina says, brows descend in confusion, "What's going on?" She inquires, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. It's a nervous habit of hers. One that her mother has been trying to break her of since she was a child. But there's something about the way this man looks at her that always seems to have her stomach in knots, especially when she catches him looking at her when she looks up at him.

"Regina," he seems hesitant. Nervous, almost. "I've really enjoyed the time we've spent together over the last few weeks, and,"  _Oh, no_. This can not be happening. Regina bites her bottom lip. "I was wondering if you'd like to have dinner with me sometime? No children this time?" Robin smirks, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

Damn him and that adorable smirk.

"Robin." Regina walks to meet him halfway between her office door and her desk. How does she turn down this handsome man that she's had so much fun with over the last few weeks? "I… well…" Regina huffs a small breath and tucks that same piece of hair behind her ear again.

"I appreciate the offer, but," Regina can tell she's disappointing him. His smile has started to fade from his handsome face, and he looks disappointed. She hates doing this to him. "I just ended things with Henry's dad a few months ago, and I just really need time to figure out who I am without that relationship weighing me down. I've enjoyed our time, too, so much," she says, placing her hand on his bicep, "but what I need right now… is a friend. Is that ok?" Regina looks at Robin nervously.

She really has enjoyed their time together – furniture shopping, playdates at the park, quick chats while she's dropping off small pieces of furniture, their phone calls — but she cannot date. At least not right now, anyway. She'd finally decided a few days ago that dating a client wouldn't be the worst thing in the world… but only when she's ready, which she isn't right now. Shouldn't be, couldn't be anyway, she tells herself. She just ended the longest relationship of her life not even a year ago.

"Of course," Robin slightly smiles, "I'll take whatever you're willing to give. I understand needing time to heal after being with someone for a long time." His eyes are so warm and affectionate, so empathetic. This is torture on her. Why couldn't his nanny have convinced him to hire her a few months from now, when she's ready to date?

Great.

Charming, caring,  _and_  understanding.

Regina smiles sadly at Robin, "Thank you." After a few seconds of awkward silence and staring into each other's eyes, Regina speaks up.

"Do you want to see what I've come up with so far on the computer?" She nods her head toward her desk where her laptop sits with an uneasy look on her face.

"Sure," he says with a defeated smile.

{********************************}

_Shit_. That's all Robin can think. He'd been so confident waltzing into her office just a few minutes ago. He has enjoyed their time together so much over the last two weeks, and he was positive that she had, too.

She says she just wants a friend right now and of course he understands. Henry is ten, and she just ended things with his father. Anyone would need time to heal after a breakup of that magnitude.

Hell, he had needed almost two years after Marian died to even start dating again and they'd only been together for six years.

He understands.

Hates it. But understands.

And if a friend is what Regina needs, then a friend he will be.

Following behind her toward her desk, she sits down in her chair and motions for him to take a seat in the chair on the other side of the desk. Taking residence in the plush chair, he leans his chest into her desk as she turns her laptop around to show him her digital designs.

They're breathtaking. Not that he expected anything less. "These look amazing, Regina," he tells her. There's still a tensioned air between the two of them, but when you've just been rejected, I guess awkwardness is only to be expected when you have to stay around and work.

"Thank you," she smiles, clicking to the next screen to show him the designs for the hallway and waiting area. Again, she's done a wonderful job, and he finds himself relaxing, telling her he's excited to see the finished product in a few months because it all looks so great on the computer screen.

After viewing his fifteen employee's offices, he asks for a few small adjustments to be made, which she makes note of to change once he leaves. "It takes a while to change, even small tweaks," she explains.

"I'm sorry," his brow slightly furrows, feeling like an inconvenience.

"Oh," she pushes her hair out of her face, "It's not a problem, Robin. I just figured you wouldn't want to sit here for half an hour or so while I change things," she chuckles, causing him to softly smile. He still feels like a git no matter how much he's relaxed since she said she just wanted a friend.

She tells him she's glad he told her now. "Remember, it's easier for me to change things now before we start actually working on those offices." She smiles in his direction, eyes glancing back to her computer screen, then back to his awkwardly. "So, it's no problem."

"Ok, great," he nods, standing from the chair. He assures her everything looks amazing and asks her to just tweak those wall colors and that pesky bookshelf and they'd be good to go.

She says _,_ "ok," biting her lip and nodding her head. Taking a deep breath, she tells him she'll get those things changed and send the designs via email for him to look at and approve.

_God,_  he thinks,  _this is so awkward._  He doesn't want it to be awkward like this, he enjoys this friendship that they've developed and he won't let him asking her out prematurely ruin everything.

"Alright," he smiles, "I'll look those over and get back to you. Thanks again, Regina."

After her  _mmhmm,_   _no problem_ , he walks towards the door as she stands from behind her desk.

Turning back toward her, he softly says, "Hey," causing her to look up at him and smile a questioning smile. "The boys had such a good time at the park, Roland hasn't stopped talking about it the past few days." They chuckle together as she walks closer to the doorway he stands in.

"Maybe we can take them somewhere this weekend… if Henry isn't with his father, of course." Robin shrugs his shoulder in a nonchalant manner. He's already made a fool of himself today, so no harm in at least asking to spend time together with their kids, right? "Roland has been begging me to go see  _Cars 3_ , so I was thinking of taking him to that before he explodes."

Laughing and placing her hand on the door frame, she tells him, "That actually sounds really nice. Henry has been talking about wanting to see it, too." She smiles, saying her son won't be with Daniel, he'll have him the next weekend, so they're free to go to the movies.

"Excellent. Tink will have Roland for a few hours Saturday morning while I get some work done at the office, but we can go after that."

"Sounds perfect," she smiles, opening the door to her office wider, "I'll text you later once I look up movie times so we can decide."

Telling her that sounds good, he turns to leave, reminding her to send those new sketches over when she's done and he'll see her on Saturday.

_Friends. He can definitely be her friend_ , he tells himself.


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Thanks for much for the favorites and follows. It's definitely encouraged me to keep going with this story lol
> 
> Thanks to my lovely betas, Brooke and Shay, for all their help with this chapter… it would have been really awful without you ladies haha
> 
> As always, please leave a review on here and let me know what you think so far. Thank you!

**Chapter Four**

Regina hated telling Robin that she just wanted to be friends because, if she's honest with herself, she definitely did not want to be  _just_  friends with him. But she also knows that coming out of a twelve year relationship means she needs time to figure out who she is on her own.

It's been a little over a month since Regina dropped the friendship bombshell on Robin, but despite the label, Regina and Robin find themselves spending more and more time together. Regina frequently stops by Robin's office to either drop off furniture, wall décor, or to ask about design aspects (granted, she could call him to ask those questions, but seeing him in person is so much better), and the pair also take their boys out on playdates on the weekends when Henry is not with his father.

They've been to the movies, the park, museums, and even visited the aquarium last weekend.

There's been several times that Robin has watched Henry on a few of Regina's, rarely occurring, late work nights, and Regina has watched Roland a few times when Tink was unavailable. They're friends after all, and friends watch each other's kids all the time.

That's why Regina is babysitting Roland Sunday evening while Henry is at his father's house.

Robin had to rush into the office a few hours ago to deal with the latest crisis of his  _Sleep Tight_  campaign. An important pitch meeting has been moved up to tomorrow, and it was imperative that Robin go in and oversee the work his employees were doing for the project.

Regina understood and didn't mind watching Roland – something she has been reminding Robin of repeatedly over the last few hours. He's texted her at least four times to apologize and promises he'll be there soon to pick up his son.

Regina has come to quite enjoy the company of Roland over the last few weeks, she misses the innocence of a boy that young. Henry is still young, and innocent, but he's definitely starting to understand more and more about the real world. Becoming more like a pre-teen every day.

Regina is currently sitting in the middle of her living room floor, which is covered in a plush gray and beige patterned area rug, putting a Dr. Seuss puzzle together, while Roland continues asking when Henry is coming home.

She chuckles, "Soon, baby. I promise." Regina pushes the boy's brown curls out of his face and smiles down at him, lowering her body to lay on her stomach next to him and insert the next puzzle piece.

Suddenly, there's a knock on the door. Regina puts one last piece of the puzzle into its spot and stands to open the door. When she does, she's greeted by the sight of Robin standing there in dark jeans and a light blue polo. It's more casual than he normally looks at work, but she had assumed when he dropped Roland off earlier that since it's a Sunday night, he didn't feel the need to dress up. He looks good tonight, though – a little more stressed than he did a few hours ago – but good.

"Hey," he greets, his British accent pulling her from her examination of him.

"Hey." She skims her eyes back up to his face and pulls her hair to one side. "Come on in. We're just finishing up a puzzle."

Robin moves into her apartment to greet his son. As he's making his way over to Roland, another knock sounds at the door.

"That'll be Henry," Regina announces to the boys, as Roland hops up with a  _whoop!_  and runs toward Regina at the front door, excited to see his friend again.

She turns around to open the door once more, while Robin swiftly scoops up Roland and deposits him onto his hip before he can run straight through the door trying to get to Henry.

"Hey, Mom," Henry casually says as Regina leans down to kiss his forehead.

"Robin!" Henry exclaims, going to hug his mom's new best friend (that's what he's been calling him anyway). "I didn't know you'd be here!"

Regina smiles, secretly loving the fact that her son seems to be taken with her new friend just as much as she is.

"He just got here." Regina moves to the side so Henry can come in and hang his backpack on his hook by the front door. Her apartment isn't small, but it's also not humongous, so she needs all the organization she can get. A little gray, wooden bench with three hooks above it does the trick in keeping bookbags, briefcases and shoes tidy in the entryway. "He was coming to pick up Roland." Regina turns to face Daniel again, who has yet to say anything.

Robin sets Roland down, and the boys run off to the living room as Robin says, "I'm Robin." He sticks out his hand toward Daniel for a handshake, while moving to stand next to Regina in the doorway. "I believe we met a few weeks ago at the school play."

"Yes. Hello." Daniel hesitantly shakes Robin's hand and turns to look at Regina again.

Regina can tell Daniel is more than a little shocked to see a man in her apartment. They've been broken up for almost eight months now, and she has no intention of getting back together with him, even though he desperately wants to. It's none of his business if she has a man over or not, even if that man is just a friend.

"Well," Daniel flicks his eyes over to Robin, then back to Regina, no sign of any emotion on his face, "his homework is done. It's in his book bag."

"Ok, great." She nods her head. "Thanks, Daniel," Regina says, an awkward smile on her face.

The air between the three adults is thick. Regina can tell Daniel is jealous, but right now she just needs him to leave. He has no claim to her and can't dictate who she spends her time with anymore.

"We'll see you in two weeks," Regina says, shifting slightly from one foot to the other. Turning her head in the direction of the living room, she calls out, "Henry, come tell your father goodnight."

After Henry bids his father goodnight, Daniel takes one more quick glance in Robin's direction and then leans in to kiss Regina's cheek, lingering longer than normal. Regina pulls away, quicker than she probably should have, but Daniel hasn't tried to kiss her in  _any_  way since they broke up, and she's not comfortable with him doing it now. She figures if she limits their physical contact, innocent as it may be, he'll finally understand that she isn't going to go running back to him.

"Bye, Daniel." Regina shoots him a glare and closes the door.

Huffing out a small breath, Regina turns to face Robin. Smiling slightly, she asks if he wants to stay for dinner. The boys already have the Xbox turned on and she doesn't think they'll want to turn their game off any time soon. "Besides," she reasons, shrugging her shoulder, "Roland's been asking to see Henry since he got here earlier, so it'll give the boys time to play together."

"Sure," he smiles brightly, "dinner sounds wonderful."

{***********************}

Robin agrees that dinner would be nice considering he hasn't eaten since breakfast. After Regina asks if he wants wine, Robin agrees and makes his way into her kitchen to pull out two wine glasses. He's been to her apartment enough times now that he knows exactly where they are (second gray shaker cabinet to the left of the dishwasher – she'd been sure to point out her transitional style living spaces the first time he had come over, causing him to chuckle fondly at her enthusiasm for decorating). Regina follows suit and pulls out a bottle of Merlot from her small wine rack for them to enjoy, handing the bottle to Robin for him to pour their drinks. She told him that she'd stuck a lasagna in the oven earlier after Roland helped her put all the ingredients together (informs him that she was also helping him read the recipe, a reading tip Henry's teacher had given her when he was Roland's age to help develop a love for reading, which had clearly worked for her son), so she sits down at the kitchen table after checking the timer on the stove.

"Sorry about Daniel," She starts hesitantly, looking over at Robin, "He can be…"

"Jealous?" Robin finishes for her, taking a seat at the kitchen table across from her and handing her a glass of wine.

"Yes," Regina giggles. She pulls her legs up to her chest and takes a sip of her drink, thanking Robin for pouring the libations.

"You've never really told me about him before." Robin takes a sip of his wine before saying, "you've always been a little vague. How did the two of you meet?" Daniel seemed nice enough the first time he met him at the school play, but tonight he just seemed like an asshole. He's not sure what Regina ever saw in him.

Regina goes on to tell him how her mother was the one to set them up.

"Daniel was an aspiring equestrian rider. Mother and all her friends love spending time at the horse races, wearing their big fancy hats and what not," she dramatically narrows her eyes and shakes her head, "treating their Saturdays at the races like it's the Kentucky Derby," Regina laughs, waving her hand in the air and rolling her eyes at the memory, telling him how ridiculous her mother and friends always looked.

She goes on to say how Cora loved Daniel, thought he was perfect for her. He would certainly be able to give Regina the lifestyle her mother always wanted her to have once he became more well known in the equestrian world, which he hadn't. She says Daniel gave up that dream and became an accountant at one of the top-rated accounting firms in the city, which mother still highly approved of.

"…and he  _was_  perfect for me… when I was twenty." Regina continues, "We wanted to get married after dating for almost two years, but then I got pregnant." Another sip of wine before she goes on, "Mother wouldn't stand for me to walk down the aisle with a baby bump, so we agreed to wait until after Henry was born."

With a distant look in her eye, she tells Robin that once Henry was born and she had her wedding body back, she realized she didn't want to marry Daniel. "Maybe it was some type of rebellion against my mother," Regina sighs, turning her head to look over her shoulder at the boys in the living room, seemingly making sure they weren't concerned with their parent's conversation. He assumes she doesn't want Henry to hear too many of the details of his parent's rocky relationship, which he understands. "She always tried to control so much of my life, but once I had a child of my own, I finally took a stand for myself."

"And that's when you broke up with Daniel for the first time?"

"No," Regina groans, taking another sip of her wine and getting up to check on the lasagna. When she gets back to the table, she continues. She tells Robin how she broke up with Daniel the first time when Henry was two, but got back together a few months later because she missed the companionship and thought Henry needed to be around his dad more.

"I broke up with him again when Henry was five, but got back together with him after my mother insisted it was the right thing to do for Henry. She said he needed to grow up in a stable household where both his parents lived together," Regina tuts, rolling her eyes. Robin gets the impression that her mother is a controlling witch, wanting to have a say in every aspect of Regina's life. He can tell from the small amount of information he's been given by Regina that he would not be very fond of her mother at all.

"I got back together with him  _again_  when Henry was seven, but after a while," Regina shrugs her shoulders and purses her lips, "I just kind of realized I didn't love him in  _that_  way anymore and hadn't for quite some time. We were two totally different people than when we first got together. A lot changes between twenty and thirty-two, you know?"

He certainly does. Marian had come into his life when he was in his late twenties, much more ready for a serious relationship. He's thirty-four now and can only laugh at how immature he had been at twenty years old. Can't even imagine being married to one of the girls he dated back then.

She tells him how she finally left him for good this last time eight months ago and has no intention of getting back together with him. Ever. Robin can't help but to feel a little sad for Regina. She's spent over a decade with a man that she knew she didn't love all because the people who should've cared for her the most pushed and pressured her into staying with this man.

"Emma, my friend that was at the play the other week," she points her hand in his direction, "helped a lot after all of the breakups, but especially this last one." Regina talks about how Emma helped her pack up all her belongings (again), and most of Henry's, to move in with her for a few weeks until she found her current apartment. During their previous breakups, she and Henry always ended up staying with her parents. She came to realize that was part of the problem, though. Just another reason that she had been so easily convinced to go back to Daniel each time, so Emma insisted that she and Henry stay with her. In her weaker moments that first month or so, when Cora made her feel like she was in the wrong and needed to go back to him, Emma always encouraged her to be strong and not give in to her mother's insistence. Emma always reminds her that she's an adult and doesn't have to do what  _mommy says_. Regina grins at the memory of Emma's words.

When she looks up, Robin staring into her eyes, matching her grin with one of his own.

"Emma sounds like a smart woman," Robin says, dimples showing on his face. He's glad she's had a friend like Emma to help her get away from such a toxic relationship.

Joking, Regina tilts her head to one side, cocking an eyebrow upward and says, "She likes to think so." Getting up to check on the food one more time, she declares it needs just a few more minutes the brown on the top.

{***********************}

"So," sitting back down, she speaks uncertainly, "tell me about Marian. What happened to her?" All she knows is that he and Roland lost her a few years ago, but she's never pushed for more information. The time never seemed right, but she's opening up to him about Daniel so the conversation seems to be lending itself to this line of questioning.

"Car accident." Robin sighs, taking a sip of his wine and looking past her left shoulder. The boys are in the next room playing Mario Kart, but he keeps his voice low anyway. He's mentioned before that he doesn't like to talk about Marian's death around Roland.

"She was a nurse – worked a late shift one night, and on her way home a drunk driver drifted into her lane. It was a head on collision. She… died on impact," He finishes, looking down at his hands.

Regina reaches over, placing her hand on top of Robin's that rests at the bottom of his wine glass. She can't imagine the pain of losing someone you love so suddenly, especially with a child involved. The thought breaks her heart.

"Luckily," he tells her, looking back up to her, "A friend of ours was staying with us at the time while he was in the process of buying a new house." He softly smiles at the memory of his friend, saying he was able to leave Roland under Neal's watchful eye when he got the call from the hospital.

He tells her it was late, and Roland was already asleep, so not having to worry about waking his son up and drag him to the hospital while he identified Marian's body was a relief lifted from his shoulders. She shudders, thinking about how awful the whole situation must have been. Pinching her brows together in sympathy, she gently rubs the back of Robin's hand. "How old was Roland?"

He breathes out a deep sigh and tells her, "Just under a year."

"That's awful." Regina gives his hand a small squeeze. "I'm so sorry."

"Thank you," Robin says, looking down at their hands and turning his over to rest in hers before glancing back up to her eyes, "it was rough, but my best mate, Neal, kept reminding me that I had a beautiful baby boy to look after." He pauses a moment to take a sip of his wine, while Regina mirrors him and sips on her own.

"You know," he breaths, "sometimes when I look at him, all I see is my Marian." He lightly scoffs out a dry chuckle and says it used to break his heart, looking at his son and only seeing what he had lost, but now he's this cute little smiling reminder of the good times he and Marian shared.

He goes on to say that Neal's reminders and Roland's smiles are what got him through some of his tougher days.

"Your Neal sounds a lot like my Emma," Regina says, causing both of them to chuckle. She's glad Robin had a friend like that in his time of need. As much as Emma has helped her over the years, she can only imagine the support she would have needed from her if Daniel had ever passed away.

"Maybe we should set them up," Robin grins, giving her hand, that he's now holding, a gentle pulse.

Regina giggles saying Emma would probably eat him alive.

"I think he can handle it." Robin jokes, those damn dimples showing again.

She smiles at him. Regina feels content sitting at her table, sipping wine while dinner cooks in the oven, talking about personal topics with Robin, but also joking around. She's comfortable around him. Everything about tonight makes her almost forget she's not supposed to be attracted to him. Probably not supposed to be holding his hand like she is, either. But yet, this just feels so…  _right_.

Without warning, Robin leans in and brushes a strand of hair behind Regina's ear. Regina's breath catches in her throat, realizing that he's about the kiss her, and she nervously nibbles on her bottom lip.

Regina's eyes slide shut, and just as she starts to feel Robin's breath ghosting over her lips, Henry comes running into the kitchen. Startling both adults, they quickly separate and look toward the older boy who is dressed like a pirate. Clearly at some point during their deep conversation, the boys had snuck away to Henry's room and pulled out his old trunk of costumes. Henry had always loved playing dress up as a smaller child and has kept all his former halloween costumes (even though only a handful of them still fit). It was always a fun way to keep his imagination active. Regina can recall many a weekend that she found herself, over the years, dressed in different costumes, ranging from a firefighter to a chef with a big, poofy hat, chasing her son around the apartment. The memory of those lazy Saturday's playing dress up with her baby boy brings a smile to her face as she looks over at him and amusedly shakes her head.

"We're having a swashbuckling good time!" Henry exclaims in his best pirate voice, swirling his plastic hook of a hand around as Roland joins him shouting  _Arghhh_  and swinging his foam sword in the air, "But we're hungry, Mom. Is dinner ready yet?"

"Almost, Captain Hook," Regina giggles, standing to grab her oven mitt to check on the lasagna. "Go wash up and it should be ready by time you boys get clean."

Robin clears his throat, sitting back further in his chair. The air is thick with tension, sexual or just awkward, she isn't so sure anymore.

After a brief moment of weighted silence, Robin finally breaks the ice. "Henry and Roland seem to get on nicely. It's amazing to me since Henry is so much older than Ro."

Regina smiles fondly, while busying herself in the kitchen. "Yeah. I love that Henry is like that. He's always had friends of all ages. You should've seen his last birthday party – it was a smorgasbord of kids." Regina laughs, telling Robin how Henry had invited four fourth graders, two third graders, a fifth grader, and some second graders, one of which had been retained and  _should_  be in third.

Robin chuckles softly, "Sounds like a full house."

"Oh," Regina lifts her eyebrows and pulling their dinner out of the oven, still not meeting his eyes, "It was! I'm just glad he didn't want a slumber party." She finishes, placing the steaming baking dish on top of the stove.

As she's taking the food out, the boys come running into the kitchen.

"Are you all clean, my boy?" Robin asks Roland, scooping him up into his lap. She's thankful he hadn't decided to follow her over to the oven to continue his descent onto her lips because she might have been tempted to turn in his arms and let him, despite what her brain is trying to tell her  _not_ to feel.

"Sure am, Papa!" Roland exclaims, shoving his freshly washed hands into Robin's face. Regina chuckles to herself at Roland's adorable personality. He's so cute in everything he does, can tell he's been raised right, and she's so glad he's in her life now (and his father, too, but she's not thinking about  _that_  right now.)

Regina smiles in Roland's direction and dishes out four helpings of cheesy Italian goodness while Robin pours the boys two glasses of water. After the boys came in from cleaning up, he'd made his way into the kitchen to help, claiming he couldn't just sit there and let her do all the work since she cooked.

Trying to avoid his eyes since he tried to kiss her is much easier now that the boys are in the same room. They're hyped up from playing pirates, and even though they are still dressed like them, she reminds both boys that it's time to calm down and eat their dinner. They're out of breath, but agree that she's right. They take their seats and sip from their glasses of water, calming their heart rates. She muses over how easily they can rile themselves up, noting Roland's pink cheeks. Clearly the pirates really were having a  _swashbuckling good time_  back there. Hopefully all this excitement will tucker them both out and they'll sleep like babies tonight and be well rested for school in the morning.

They eat dinner, all chatting about school, the girl that Roland thinks is beautiful (which causes both adults to smirk as they catch each other's eyes from across the table), and what Henry's been learning lately. Roland tells Henry and Robin all about the fun things he and Regina did earlier in the day, and Henry tells them about his weekend with his dad.

"It was fun," Henry shrugs, taking a bite of his food, "we worked on my homework for a little bit Friday after school."

Reminding him not to talk with food in his mouth, Regina asks, "What else did you do, sweetheart?"

She's hoping that Daniel kept their son entertained over the weekend and didn't just let him watch t.v. the whole time. Daniel's company is gearing up for the rush of tax filers who didn't file early, so she knows he's been having to bring a lot of work home lately. Surely, though, he would take his son's weekend to only do paperwork once Henry was in bed.

Henry chukles. "Well, yeah, mom," he says, rolling his eyes in his pre-teen way, "we went to the movies yesterday and then he took me out to eat. Oh, and we went to the science museum today after lunch." Well, at least they did something other than the movies. Henry has always been a bit of an explorer, always wanting to gain new knowledge about all sorts of topics, and he loves science. She was planning on taking him over the summer but supposes not much has changed at the museum since the last time she took him, and it saved her some money. The smile on his face as he recalls all the things they saw, though, especially the room dedicated to outer space, which is his favorite, tells her it was a good decision on Daniel's part to take him there. She's glad he had a great time.

Chiming in, Robin says, "sounds like a great time!"

Henry agrees, saying he had fun, but he'll be glad to sleep in his own bed for the next two weeks. His bed at his dad's house is  _super comfortable_  but he forgot his pillow this weekend so he didn't sleep as well.

Regina clicks her tongue against her teeth and makes a mental note to make sure he has his favorite pillow from now on before dropping him off at Daniel's on his weekends. Henry has a handful of pillows on his bed here and at Daniel's, but there's something about his blue and green plaid pillow that he's always loved. He's had it since he was two, so she assumes it's a comfort thing at this point. It's thin, the stuffing just about worn out of it, but he loves it. She is actually surprised they  _both_  forgot it this weekend, it's usually his top priority when getting ready to go. He doesn't have to take that much to his dad's anymore. Daniel has a dresser full of clothes for him to wear when he's there, and a bathroom stocked with his favorite toothpaste and shampoo, so he doesn't really need to pack underwear, clothes, or his toiletries. He normally just packs his favorite fairy tale book, a few toys,  _his pillow_ , and his retainer. She'll add "H's pillow" to her reminders list in her phone before she goes to bed tonight just to be safe.

"Me and Gina did a Cat in the Hat puzzle!" Roland exclaims, clearly wanting to be a part of this conversation.

Smiling at his son, Robin says, "Did you now?"

At Roland's  _mmhmm, sure did, Papa!_  He goes on to tell the other three members of the table that him and his Gina watched a movie and put the lasagna together before he took a nap, then ate a snack and worked on their puzzle until everyone showed up.

Running her hand across Roland's forehead and softly smiling at the youngest member of their group, Regina confirms the fun afternoon activities and tells them that Roland even got to nap in Henry's "big boy bed." Regina's apartment is only two bedrooms, so the few times Roland has needed to take a nap there, he's had to sleep in her son's bed (she'd offered her own bed after their trip to the aquarium the other week, but he insisted Henry's bed was cooler). Henry's bed is just a double, but compared to Roland's twin sized mattress, he thinks it's gigantic. He claims he's just like Henry when he gets to lay on his mattress. Roland clearly looks up to Henry, and Regina finds it adorable.

As the three of them giggle at the boy's enthusiasm of taking a nap, Robin comments that he might need to get Roland a bed the size of Henry's so that his son will take naps on the weekends. They don't take naps at school anymore, but he's mentioned before that Roland still gets pretty knackered some weekend afternoons and it becomes inevitable. She tells him that, sadly, will probably end soon. He's gotten lucky; Henry stopped napping on the weekends his third week of kindergarten. "There were several weekends back then that I cursed the school for taking nap time away and getting him in the habit of not sleeping for even just half an hour each afternoon." She laughs, pointing in Henry's direction, thinking over how much her son has grown up these past few years. She and Roland hadn't had a terribly exciting afternoon, but she supposes getting to spend the day with her alone  _and_  the excitement of sleeping in Henry's bed had worn him out enough to take a short nap.

Turning the conversation back to Henry, Robin asks, "Did you get all of your homework done, or did you need some help with it?" He's helped Henry a few times before on a particularly hard homework assignment, but hearing him offer to help makes her heart melt once again.

Finishing his last bite of noodle and sauce, Henry tells him, "No, we finished it all on Friday. Dad said we couldn't go to the movies or anything until I was done with it," causing Regina to smile, which she tries to hide from her son with a bite of her food. She's glad that Daniel also puts an importance on his school work, not that she ever doubted he would. "Thanks, though."

"That's good." Robin claps his hand on Henry's shoulder as he stands to place his plate in the dishwasher. "Your father was right. Homework should always come before playing."

Sighing, Henry groans an  _I know_  while rolling his eyes in good fun. He knows homework is important, but she also understands him wanting to have fun. She reminds him that summer break will be here soon, and he will have all the time in the world to have fun with them and his dad (as long as he gets his summer reading project done, too), along with attending his summer camp. Henry agrees, saying he can't wait for his camp to start, before taking his plate over to Robin at the sink.

After she and Roland finish eating and putting their plates into the dishwasher along with Robin and Henry's, Regina notices how late it's gotten. It's definitely past Roland's bedtime and almost time for Henry to get in bed as well.

Regina sends the pirates back to Henry's room to change into their regular clothes, while she and Robin make their way toward the front door. Robin grabs his jacket off the coat rack and turns to look into Regina's eyes. He'd gotten her to look at him a few times during dinner, smiling at her when he did, but it is still a little awkward. She warmed up to him again during dinner and had returned his smiles from behind her long lashes, before looking away again. Once his coat is situated onto his shoulders, Robin leans in slightly, dipping his head down to catch her eyes. She's currently not making eye contact, instead is staring at her hands.

When she looks up at him, her breath grows heavy. He's looking at her like she hangs the moon, and she knows he wants to kiss her. She desperately wants that, too, but she knows she can't.  _Oh, just do it_ , her mind tells her. She blames it on the glass of wine she'd had with dinner, because when he leans in an inch more, she raises her head to look at him and lets his lips catch hers. He lingers for a brief moment, sending a jolt of electricity through both of them. She lets out a gasp at the short, sudden, but not terribly unwelcomed, new sensation. It had been nothing more than a slightly lingering peck, but it was enough to make her feel things. Things she keeps telling herself not to feel.

"Sorry, I..." Robin whispers into the space between them, their foreheads still touching.

"I know." Regina opens her eyes and looks up at Robin, giving him a soft smile as the boys come running into the entryway. She knows he was about to tell her that he couldn't help himself, because she knows the feeling all too well. She couldn't help herself, either, despite her mind telling her not to. Regina quickly pulls away from Robin and turns to face the boys as Robin removes Roland's jacket from the rack. It's not too terribly cold outside, it is only April, but at night it gets a little bit chillier so jackets become a necessity.

She can't help but be distracted by the short lived feeling of his lips on hers. She subtly rubs her fingers over her lips. She didn't get a good enough taste, but kissing Robin is now something she knows she wants to do more often.

{*******************************}

He had actually opened up to her about Marian's death, something he rarely talks to anyone about. Sure, Neal knew all about it, had been there for him through all of it, and he'd even gone through some grief counseling in the beginning when he was dealing with being a single dad to such a young son. Other than that, he hasn't really talked too much about it. It's hard, losing the one you always thought you'd spend your life with, especially so young, but he's learned to live his life in a way that still honors her memory, at least he hopes so, anyway. He knows Marian wouldn't want him to spend the rest of his life single and miserable, which is why he had finally started dating again a few years ago. Something about Regina, though, just feels different. Feels more genuine. They may just be friends now, but he hopes one day she's just as ready as he is to move their friendship to a deeper level.

He went to apologize for that kiss and tell her how he just couldn't help himself, but she cut him off right before the boys came into the room. Roland runs to Regina and wraps his arms around her legs, squeezing for good measure and causing her to look up to Robin and smile. His son tells her he had fun today and that they need to work on their puzzle again soon.

"I agree," she chuckles, leaning down to place a kiss to the top of Roland's head, "We'll work on it the next time your daddy needs to work and you come over here."

At Roland's  _yeah!,_  he hands his son his lightweight jacket, with a hood that has lime green dinosaur spikes on it. Regina bends down to help him put it on as Roland turns to face Henry. He tells Henry goodbye and the older boy assures Roland that they'll pull out his costumes again another time.

Standing from her crouched position, Regina smiles at Robin before quickly running her fingers over her lips and wrapping her arm around Henry's shoulder.

_She didn't slap me or yell at me. That's got to be a good sign,_  Robin thinks as he takes Roland's hand and turns to face her one last time.

{************************}

"Thanks again for watching him today." Robin says as Regina turns her head to look at him, moving to open the front door.

"It was no problem." She shrugs a shoulder up and smiles brightly down at Roland, "We had a good time."

"Tell Regina goodnight, Roland."

"Bye, Miss Gina!" Roland exclaims, letting go of his father's hand and wrapping his arms around her legs again, "Bye, Henry!"

"Bye, Roland. See you at school tomorrow," Henry says, giving the young boy a high-five before father and son make their way out of the apartment.

With Robin and Roland gone, Regina locks the front door, leaning up against it for support and breathes a deep sigh. Turning to head toward the kitchen, she decides she still needs to clean up a little bit before climbing into bed and over-analyzing everything that's happened tonight.

"I like them," Henry says, coming into the kitchen from the living room. He'd been straightening up the pillows the swashbuckling pirates messed up earlier and handed her a cup that was left on the coffee table. "I'm glad we're friends with them now." Henry's eyes slide over in her direction as he sends a smirk his mother's way.

"Me too." Regina breathes, licking her lips to taste Robin one last time. She wonders just how much Henry saw tonight. "I'm glad we're friends with them, too, sweetheart."

Friends. That's what they are.


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Thanks to Brooke for beta-ing this… I went back and added a few things (because I'm just sitting here being extra lol) so all mistakes are mine! :)
> 
> Please leave a review
> 
> Last chapter: Regina watched Roland while Robin worked late. The four of them ended up having dinner at her place, the boys played dress up like pirates… oh, and Robin kissed Regina after she said she just needed a friend. #Oops

**Chapter Five**

His hands are calloused – more than Regina would've thought – but it's not uncomfortable. In fact, it's manly and rough, and she likes it.

They glide down her chest, tweaking her nipples in a short lived, teasing way and continue down onto her stomach as his mouth leaves a trail of kisses from her lips, down her neck, and to her shoulder.

She lets out a small moan and allows her hands to travel up his back, gripping his hair at the base of his skull. She wants to hold him in place for as long as possible.

"Robin," she breathes into the space between their faces, "touch me."

Robin's leaning on one of his arms now, looking at her while biting down on his bottom lip and smiling at her. His other hand travels down her stomach and underneath the top of her shorts. As his fingers start to dip into her wet folds, he murmurs into her ear, "Is this what you want?"

"Yes," she pants. His fingers feel amazing and she doesn't want them to stop, but she also wants so, so much more. She can feel his hardness pressed against her thigh and knows he wants her just as badly. "Don't stop."

"But the pirates are yelling," Robin says, furrowing his eyebrows and placing a kiss on her lips while pressing his fingers deeper inside of her.

"What?" Regina asks, confused, opening her eyes and looking up into Robin's blue eyes.

"The pirates. They're yelling."

Regina listens for a second and realizes she can hear a high-pitched noise, too. The pirates? What the  _hell_?

Regina springs into a sitting position, panting.

The alarm. It was just a dream.

A very good, very confusing, very wet dream.

Turning over and rolling her eyes, Regina turns off her alarm and climbs out of bed. She needs to shower, probably a cold one at this point, and do her hair before meeting with a new client today.

She's supposed to go to Robin's office later to show him her designs for the smaller offices, but after her dream, she just isn't sure if she should. He kissed her goodnight last night, as short lived as the kiss was, he had still done it.

She's told him already that she just wants to be friends, but kissing him had simply felt right. It felt like something she wants to do again, and again, and again.

After getting ready for the day, and getting Henry onto the school bus, she texts her right-hand woman at work, Mary Margaret, to see if she can take the design sketches to Robin for her. Her meeting will keep her plenty busy, anyway.

Luckily, Mary Margaret is available (she's always willing to do what her boss needs), and Regina couldn't be more relieved. She can, hopefully, avoid Robin for a few days and sort her feelings out before having to lay eyes on his beautiful blue ones again.

{***********************}

"Mr. Locksley?" Belle says, her voice coming into Robin's office from the phone's speaker.

Pressing the button, Robin responds in the affirmative.

"Mary Margaret from Storybook Décor is here."

"Send her in," Robin says, confused as to why someone different is coming to their meeting today. He knows he kissed her last night, but she hadn't seemed too put off by it. Maybe he was wrong, though. Maybe she was angry at him for kissing her.

"Mr. Locksley?" A young woman with brown hair, cut into a pixie style, walks into his office. She's wearing a yellow cardigan and a blue skirt that looks to have some type of animal on it. Birds, maybe? She is young and looks just like the perfect type to work at Regina's company.

"Yes, hello," Robin says, standing from his desk with his eyebrows slightly lifted, "I'm Robin Locksley. And you are…?" He asks, shaking the woman's hand.

"Mary Margaret Nolan. I work for Regina," Mary explains, a friendly smile on her face. The woman seems nice enough, and he's positive she is, but she's no Regina. However, he's an adult. He can make it through one design meeting without Regina here. "She had another meeting this morning with some new clients, so she sent me in her place to show you the designs. I hope that's okay?"

"Yes, of course," Robin smiles, shaking his head, not wanting to seem rude. He is fine with Mary Margaret being here, he was just thrown off at first. "My office is really coming together, so I'm confident I'll like Regina's designs for my employee's offices as well."

Mary Margaret takes out the sketches and lays them on the new glass conference table. The new table is slightly larger than the one he had before, and it has wrought iron legs to match his new desk that he picked out with Regina so many weeks ago.

After looking over the designs, Robin tells Mary Margaret that they look wonderful and they can start on them right away. The offices are all being redone to match his new office design. Warm, neutral griege coloring on the walls, which seem very inviting, mixed with glass and iron elements for his employee's desks and bookshelves as well. The seating in each room has been updated to chairs comfortable enough for clients to sit on during a meeting or two with plush pillows. It's comfortable, but still business like, and Robin thinks it looks great.

Mary Margaret smiles, says she'll let Regina know and turns to leave the office.

Once she's gone, Robin tries to get work done but can't seem to concentrate. His thoughts keep drifting back to Regina and how she wasn't there today.

Pulling out his cellphone, he opens up his messages and clicks on Regina's name.

_Hey._

There's no immediate response, but Robin tells himself that she really is in a meeting and forces himself to focus on his work.

After thirty excruciating minutes, his phone dings with a text alert.

_Hey. Sorry, I was in a meeting. Did Mary Margaret get there ok today?_

_Yes, she did. The designs look wonderful. Once again, you've outdone yourself :)_

_Thank you…glad you liked them._

It's a short lived conversation, but she seems normal enough, so Robin sighs with relief and focuses his attention back on his Sleep Tight campaign. The pitch meeting is in a little under two hours. He just needs to focus on this right now, he can talk to Regina after the meeting. He keeps reminding himself to  _just focus on work_.

{************************}

Regina felt bad sending Mary Margaret to Robin's today, but she was just too afraid of seeing him so soon after her dream. She thoroughly enjoyed the feel of him in her bed, touching her in all the right places. Too much in fact. She needed to not see Robin Locksley today, needs to clear her head.

It was Monday and she knew he had that big pitch meeting today anyway. It's the reason she had watched Roland for him yesterday, so she didn't think he would mind her sending Mary Margaret in her place for once.

She's meeting with some new clients; clients who were dragging on and on about wanting their whole mansion to be redone in a farmhouse chic vibe. The wife has been watching  _Fixer Upper_  too much lately according to the husband, so she wants to feel like Joanna Gaines herself has redone their whole house. It's a tall order for Regina, but certainly not the first farm house design she's done. Plus, these people are well known in the community, so if she does a good job on their house, she might be able to score some other high paying jobs.

While meeting with the Farmhouse people, The Kings, her phone buzzes.

A text from Robin.

Regina wraps up her meeting as soon as possible so she can look at her phone – which definitely made her feel like she was back in high school, getting hand written notes from the cutest boy in school. She hates, but secretly likes, that he's able to make her stomach flutter with a simple  _hey_  in a text message.

After sending a few, very innocent, work related texts to Robin, Regina finds it hard to concentrate on business. First, she looks over Robin's offices but that causes her thoughts to drift to his calloused hands running along her body, so she clicks over to the snocone building's designs. She updates the wall color on the digital design and changes their seating to be more modern. Restless, she then looks over the hair studio, updating some of the art on the walls. Sighing out a breath, she picks up her phone again to check her messages. She needs to stop thinking about that dream, but that doesn't mean she can't spend time with Robin,  _her friend,_ in the meantime. She can definitely do that. Definitely.

She knows she woke up telling herself she didn't need to see Robin for the next few days but now finds herself wanting to do just that. She knows they're both busy with work, though, so she decides to ask if he wants to take the boys to the park this weekend. The boys get along, and who is she to deny her son an afternoon of fun with a friend? That'll give her a few days to recover from her almost-sex dream and time to get a good chunk of work done on all of her ongoing projects.

Regina picks up her phone and types out a quick text to Robin.

_What are you doing Saturday afternoon?_

Nervous, she stands and paces the length of her office. No one knows about her dream except her, so she has no reason to act any different around Robin. It's unfair to him, and her, to punish the friendship they've built all because her libido was getting the best of her while she slept.

Her phone pings with a text alert from him.

_Nothing that I know of. Why?_

_Just thought the boys might want to spend some time together. Maybe go to the park?_

_Sounds good. Roland and I can come pick you lot up if you'd like._

Smiling to herself, she replies,  _That'll work. Say…2ish?_

_I'll see you then._

Perfect. Regina thinks, smiling to herself. This week needs to go by quickly.

{***********************}

As it turns out, the week decided to drag on and on for Regina. Her farmhouse mansion clients had proved to be overbearing and demanding, calling every day to change something in the initial design.

Regina has thought more than once to pawn them off on Ariel, her employee that is good at her job, she just finds her to be irritating for some reason. Their clients and her other employees seem to really like her, however, so she's kept her around. She'd already put Ariel in charge of the doctor's office, so she considered giving the project to Marco or even Mary Margaret, but Regina knows this project needs to be done beyond perfection, and she is a perfectionist through and through, so it has to be her that takes lead on it.

She only needed to do a few minor things to Robin's designs, most of which could be handled over the phone, so she didn't have an excuse to go over to Locksley Advertising all week, unfortunately.

Saturday rolls around and Regina finds herself anxiously waiting for Robin and his dimpled-duo sidekick to get there. She and Henry have busied themselves all morning – she's done laundry, cleaned the kitchen and bathrooms, and even had time to shower. Henry did the last bit of his math homework and played video games after helping her clean the kitchen.

Just when Regina is finishing brushing her hair, for the fifth time, she hears someone knocking on her front door.

"I'll get it!" Henry shouts from the living room, his bare feet pattering along the gray hardwood floor.

Smoothing her hands over her black t-shirt, she walks out into the living room.

Robin, Roland and Henry are all standing by the front door, obviously excited to go play at the park.

"Hey." Regina smiles at both Robin and Roland, placing her hand on Robin's bicep to steady herself while she slips on her sandals.

Leaning in, Robin says  _hello, love_  and helps steady her balance by holding on to her elbow. Henry has put his socks on since Robin and Roland showed up, but his shoes are still missing. Looking under their entryway bench, where they keep their everyday shoes, she notices his tennis shoes are missing. When he sheepishly says he doesn't know where they are, she reminds him  _this is why I tell you to keep them by the door_. Henry's face looks guilty for the briefest of moments before it lights up in excitement and he exclaims, "I know where they are!" and runs back to his room, saying loudly that they're under his bed.

Chuckling at her son, she looks down at Roland who is tugging on her denim shorts. "Hi, Regina!" Roland exclaims, "Are you ready to go to the park?"

"I sure am, baby," She smiles down at Roland, running her hands through his curly hair, "Let me just grab some bottled water."

After grabbing the refreshments, the four of them make their way to Robin's SUV and drive to the park.

It's a nice, warm day. Although it's normally still cool enough for pants in mid-April, today has warmed up enough that she is comfortable in shorts.

Robin has opted for jeans and a short sleeve, dark blue t-shirt. Over the past almost two months that Regina has known Robin, she's noticed that he sticks to only a few colors when it comes to his shirt selection – white, black, gray, blue… sometimes an occasional green will make it into the mix. The blue ones are always her favorite because they make his eyes seem even bluer.

When they get to the park, the boys immediately run for the swings, saying they want to get on them now before more kids show up and take them all. Their son's love this park, it's the same one they ran into each other at after furniture shopping a few weeks back. It's one of the more secluded parks in the city, so not many people know about it, making it the perfect spot to spend a Saturday afternoon, away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Luckily, there is a bench not too far from the swings, so Regina yells in the boy's direction that they'll be over there.

"Ok!" The boys shout in unison.

Smiling and shaking her head slightly in amusement, Regina makes her way over the bench that Robin has already taken up residence on.

"They're cute." She smiles in the direction of their sons. They appear to be having a race to see who can swing the highest. Naturally, she knows Henry would win because, being older, his legs are stronger and can pump more forcefully on the swing. If the boys swinging in tandem is anything to go by, however, she has a feeling Henry is purposefully not swinging as high. It brings a smile to her face, seeing how caring and thoughtful her son is, and it makes her heart swell with pride. "I'm glad we were able to get together today," she states, turning her head to look Robin in the eyes. The sun is shining in his direction, making his eyes glow an almost turquoise color, catches her off guard and causes a flutter in her stomach.

"Me, too." He smiles, turning his gaze upon Regina. "It's always nice to get out on the weekends, especially when it feels so nice out."

Regina agrees, nodding and pulling her hair up into a loose ponytail. She had worn her hair down, like usual, but the sun's heat was a little too much to take, and she needed her thick hair off of her neck. It's gotten longer than usual lately, and she makes a mental note to have her stylist take a few extra inches off the next time she goes in. "And especially when work kept me cooped up inside all week. I didn't even get to go visit my favorite client," She flirts, grinning slightly.

"Oh, really?" Robin asks, mirth shining in his eyes, "Who would that be?"

"This British guy that's pretty laid back and doesn't boss me around too much." She shrugs her shoulders and scrunches her face up, saying, "He's okay, I guess."

Chuckling, Robin asks if she has other clients that are more demanding.

Rolling her eyes, Regina goes on to tell him about her newest clients wanting their entire mansion redone and how demanding they've already been – changing design ideas, switching the budget, wanting demolition done that she hadn't accounted for in her design and all the other little things these people had done in just one week.

{**************************}

Robin listens as she talks about her new clients, glad that she is talking to him so freely. It almost feels like he didn't kiss her goodnight a week ago, after she said she just needed a friend, and he cocked everything up.

Feeling comfortable talking with Regina while watching their sons play on the swings, Robin puts his arm around the back of the bench. He's careful not to touch Regina's shoulders but is pleasantly surprised when she leans a little closer into his embrace.

He listens as she continues talking about work, smiling at the way she talks so animatedly with her hands, until her phone rings.

She looks at the screen, eyebrows pinching slightly together, and excuses herself.

Frowning at her sudden change in mood, Robin gets up and makes his way over to the boys, who are still playing on the swings, clearly still having a contest to see who can swing the highest.

He hops into the third swing, saying he's going to go higher than both of them, which causes the young boys to burst into laughter.

Roland squeals, "No you're not, Papa! You're too old to be the fastest!"

Henry guffaws at that, saying, "He's right, Robin!" while pointing his hand at the older man.

Slowing his ascent into the air to look at his son, who is oblivious to what he just said, and Henry who is still laughing, Robin joins in with their laughter and pumps his legs harder, saying "Oh, ho, just watch, my boys!"

{***************************}

Watching Robin make his way over to Henry and Roland, she turns away to answer the phone.

"Daniel?" Regina says, as she brings the phone up to her ear. It's not completely unusual for Daniel to be calling, but he just had Henry last weekend and isn't scheduled to have him again until the next weekend. He normally just calls at night to say goodnight to Henry and talk with him about their days, so she's not sure why he's calling in the middle of the afternoon like this. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," Daniel replies casually, "Just calling to see what my two loves were doing today?"

Regina knew it was too good to be true. It's been over seven months since she broke up with Daniel, and he's yet to try and get back together with her. She's surprised it's taken him this long to try and lay on the charm.

Rolling her eyes, Regina tells him that they're at the park with Robin and Roland.

"You're with them again?" Daniel's snips, irritation bleeding through the phone. "Weren't they just at your apartment last weekend?"

"Yes, I am," Regina says defensively, stuffing her free hand into her pocket and toying with a small piece of lint still left inside, "and yes, they were. Robin and I are friends. Henry enjoys spending time with Roland. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal, Regina, is that I don't like the way that Robin guy looks at you. You're  _my_  girl, and he's trying to take you from me even though I know you're going to come back to me sooner or later like you always do."

Anger flaring up in her, she goes on to remind him that she's not his girl anymore and never will be again. She's tried being nice about it, but if he's going to be an ass, then so can she. Regina tells him that she's allowed to have friends over at her apartment, and she's allowed to date if she so feels.

Suddenly it hits her. It's like a metaphorical lightbulb has gone off inside her mind. She  _is_  free to date. She can date whomever she pleases, she's not controlled by Daniel Foaly. She hasn't been in love with him since Henry was a toddler, so why is she denying herself the affections of the beautiful man, who is currently racing her son to see who can swing the highest? She's been telling herself that she needs time to find out who she is on her own, but she's always known who she is. She's known who she is without Daniel for the past  _six_  years.

Amusedly rolling her eyes at Robin's antics with a grin on her face, she turns her back and begins peeling small pieces of bark off the nearest tree to keep her hands occupied. It's soothing. It keeps her hands, and her mind, busy so she doesn't cry frustrated tears or say something she'll regret.

"So, you're dating this guy, now?"

"No." Regina states, pushing back tears. She's not upset, she's just pissed off that Daniel is being such an ass about the whole thing. He's never been controlling, but his jealousy is bringing out a side of him that she has never seen before. She had never spent any significant amount of time with another man during any of their other breakups, no matter how long the split lasted, and Daniel knew it. She was never quite ready and always felt guilty if she did consider it. Sure, there was her one night stand with Graham, but other than that, she had stayed single until she eventually went back to Daniel, so seeing her spend time with Robin must be jarring to him, but they're broken up. She's made it abundantly clear that she is done with him, so why should it matter who she spends her time with? "I'm sorry, Daniel," Regina continues, blowing out a quiet exhale, "but it's been over between us for a while. More than just the past seven months, and you know that."

After a long, silent pause, she hears Daniel huff into the phone.

"Can I take Henry to dinner tonight, then? If the love of my life won't take me back, then I at least want to be with my son for a little bit. I'll have him back before bedtime."

Sighing in annoyance, she tells him sharply, "I'll ask Henry. He's having fun right now with Roland, Daniel. If he wants to, then I'll text and let you know."

"Fine. Talk soon."

After hanging up, and taking a few moments to calm herself down, Regina makes her way over to the swings with a, somewhat forced, smile on her face.

Robin is looking at her curiously, though, and she can tell he knows something is not right.

{********************************}

The boys have slowed down now, and are talking to Robin about their week at school. Roland is rambling on excitedly about how he now knows what nouns and verbs are as Henry quizzes him, calling out a word while the younger boy says what part of speech it is. Grinning at the boys, Robin looks up in Regina's direction. He can tell she is upset, but is trying not to show it in front of their sons as she makes her way over to them.

He sends a questioning glance her way, but she just shakes her head and turns her attention to Henry and Roland.

"Henry," Regina says, coming to stand behind Roland and push him on his swing, "your dad just called. He wants to take you to dinner tonight. I told him I'd ask you first if you wanted to go."

"Oh," Henry sighs, deflating a little bit and slowing his swing down some, "that's fine. I just thought the four of us were gonna go to dinner together."

Sighing slightly, Regina stops pushing Roland and walks over to kneel in front of Henry's swing. Placing her fingers under his chin gently, and giving him a sympathetic smile, she says, "We can, sweetheart, if that's what you want. Your dad just had a busy week at work and said he wanted some extra time with his number one champ."

"Okay," Henry concedes, standing from the swing, which causes Roland to do the same, clearly excited for what Henry might have the two of them do next. He's glad that Roland enjoys spending time with the older boy. He's a good kid, a good role model for his son, and he hopes this impromptu dinner with his dad doesn't upset him too much. Looking over to Robin, then back to his mother, Henry says, "that's fine. Can the four of us do something tomorrow, then?" with hope gleaming in his eyes.

Regina looks up at Robin, shrugging and tilting her head as if to ask  _is that ok?_  so, of course, he nods and agrees that they can have lunch tomorrow. He's glad Henry likes spending time with him and Roland. He enjoys the time he spends with the boy and his mother as well, so agreeing to another outing was a no brainer.

"Alright!" Henry exclaims, pumping his arms in the air, causing both adults to softly chuckle. Looking over at Roland, Henry jerks his head in the direction of the slide and takes off in a quick sprint, the younger boy following close behind.

{************************}

With the boys occupied on the slide, Regina sits in the swing recently vacated by her son. Robin goes to stand behind her and begins slightly pushing her on the swing. She knows if she talks about what is bothering her now, while she's still pissed, she'll cry and then she'll be angry at herself for crying in front of him, even though she knows he wouldn't mind. He'd probably wrap her up in his arms until she stopped and would tell her it'd all be ok, actually, the frustratingly caring man that he is.

She had told Henry a little white lie, saying that Daniel had a busy week and just needed extra time with his favorite person. She's still agitated with Daniel, so a part of her couldn't help but feel a little thrill when Henry looked upset over going to dinner with his dad. Still, Daniel is his father, and is a good father at that. She shouldn't let her own feelings get in the way of him spending time with his dad.

It's quiet for a few moments as Regina brews over her phone conversation. She's lazily dragging her foot through the sand under the swings when Robin says, "Want to talk about it?"

Not wanting to talk about how her ex is jealous of a man she's attracted to but not yet dating, and how he's being a territorial ass calling her "his" and everything, she shrugs it off and keeps her response short.

Regina clicks her tongue against her teeth, saying, "nothing to talk about," and wrapping her hands around the metal chain slightly under where Robin's are currently holding on, their fingers just barely brushing against one another's. It is a small bit of contact, but she needs something to make her feel grounded. Taking a deep, calming breath, she explains shortly, "Daniel called to see what we were doing, I told him, he said he wanted to take Henry to dinner. End of story."

"Okay," Robin gently replies, continuing to push her. She knows he can tell she's upset – she's had a bad week at work, too, which she'd already told him about, and she was looking forward to having a nice dinner with her son and their new friends.

Regina can't help but, once again, feel how being here, with Robin and the boys, just feels like this is where she's supposed to be. He's slowly pushing her on the swing, but not pushing her to talk about what's upsetting her. She needs time to cool off still, and she appreciates that he's not pressuring her to open up.

"Well, you're welcome to eat dinner with me and Roland tonight." He lightly rubs his fingers along hers on the chain before letting go and putting his hands in his pockets.

"Thanks." Regina plants her feet in the sandy ground to stop the swing when her epiphany from earlier suddenly hits her.

She  _can_  date someone.

She's been over Daniel for almost six years, why keep torturing herself (and Robin)?

She stops the swing, and turning toward Robin, she takes a chance, "but… maybe you can ask Tink to watch Roland for a little bit while the two of us… go to dinner?" Regina finishes, looking into his eyes and chewing on her bottom lip (another nervous habit she'd developed as a child), looking anxious.

She's not disappointed when Robin's grin practically goes from ear to ear, his face lighting up like a kid on Christmas morning and his teeth sinking into his bottom lip before he says, "I'll call her right now. Where would you like to go to dinner, milady?"

Grinning, she says, while sheepishly shrugging a shoulder up once, "Anywhere. You pick."

He says he will, and with that, he takes her hand and leads them over to the slide to get their boys and head back to her apartment.


	6. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big shout outs to Shay and Brooke for helping me so much….every. single. time. I changed something in this chapter lol
> 
> Thanks for all the favorites and follows after the last update! Please remember to leave a review and let me know what y'all think! :)
> 
> {***********************************}

**Chapter Six**

Regina has never been so thankful for Daniel's punctuality in her life. At quarter till five, Daniel is standing in her entryway, waiting on Henry to grab his jacket from his bedroom.

Regina is busying herself by wiping down the already clean countertops, trying, but desperately failing, to keep herself occupied until Henry leaves. Once Daniel whisks their son away for dinner, Regina can get herself ready for dinner with Robin.

Alone. No kids. A date.

Regina hasn't had a date in almost a decade. Sure, she'd been on one date with a guy, Graham, the second time she and Daniel had been broken up. It was a pleasant date, good drinks, and even more enjoyable sex, but ultimately led to Regina feeling guilty because she thought she still had feelings for Daniel. In the end, she blamed the large consumption of alcohol during the date as to why she even thought it was a good idea to sleep with a man she barely knew.

Other than Graham, Daniel is the only man Regina has ever gone on a date with (or been with in  _any_  way). So, to say she is nervous is an understatement.

She's barely spoken two words to Daniel since she opened the door and briskly walked back into the kitchen to continue cleaning. Daniel must have known she was pissed because he stayed silent in the entryway, quietly clearing his throat and stuffing his hands awkwardly into his pockets while waiting on Henry to come out from his room. Good. He should feel uncomfortable after being such an asshole earlier.

"Bye, Mom!" Henry yells from the doorway, pulling Regina from her thoughts.

Walking toward Henry and Daniel, she says, "Bye, sweetheart."

She places a kiss to Henry's forehead and straightens his lightweight jacket on his shoulders.

"Be good for your father and don't eat too much. I don't want you coming home with a stomach ache," she tells him, glancing up toward Daniel on that last part, giving him a knowing look. Daniel sometimes feels guilty about not being around Henry all the time, so he likes to spoil his son from time to time. Last time they had a quick dinner together, it resulted in Henry eating far too much sugar and throwing up all over his sheets that night.

"I won't," Henry smiles sheepishly, "love you."

"I love you, too," she smiles softly down at her baby boy. Placing her hands on his shoulders and giving him a kiss to his cheek, she says, "I'll see you at nine."

Once Henry and Daniel are out of the door, Regina rushes to her room to try and get ready. Robin will be here in thirty minutes, so she doesn't have much time.

A quick shower to rinse off the sweat from the park, some perfume and a few layers of makeup later, Regina finds herself standing in her closet deciding what to wear. She knows they agreed to not go anywhere ultra-fancy since it was such a last minute decision, but this is her first date with Robin, and she wants to look nice.

She's pulling on a simple black dress that hugs every inch of her body, falls just below her knees and has quarter length sleeves, when her doorbell rings. The dress is nice, a little dressy, but not something she wouldn't wear to work if need be. Luckily when the bell rings she is all ready, except her shoes.

Straightening the thin black belt attached to the dress, she goes to open her front door.

"Hi," she smiles, her eyes traveling down his body, giving him a quick glance over. She's pleased to see that he's chosen to dress up a little, too. Robin is in dark charcoal slacks with a black belt and an olive green button up shirt tucked in. His hair is still slightly damp from, she assumes, the shower he had taken, and she can't help but imagine him in his shower, her fingers running through that wet hair of his.

"Hi," Robin breathes out, his eyes raking down her body, making Regina feel extremely exposed, but very,  _very_  sexy.

Subtly biting her bottom lip, she tells him, "Come on in. I'm just about ready. I just need to grab my shoes."

After grabbing her black heels, they make their way down to Robin's SUV. On the way down to the parking spot, Robin reaches over and grabs Regina's hand, interlocking their fingers like it's the most natural thing in the world. The action feels so natural to her and sends a thrill through her body.

{*********************************}

Once inside the car, they begin chatting about their day and how much fun the boys had at the park.

"I didn't think Roland would ever let me live down losing that swing race," he chuckles, grazing his thumb along her knuckles of the hand that rest on his middle console.

Letting out a content sigh, she hums and says, "I have a feeling you may have let Henry win, though."

Smiling sheepishly, he says a quick  _guilty_ , raising her hand to place a peck to the back of it before letting is down gently. Regina takes the moment to check that her phone is on vibrate. She says she doesn't want any distractions tonight but needs her phone on in case something were to happen with Henry.

After a few moments, Regina grabs Robin's free hand and says, "I'm glad we're doing this. I've heard a lot of good things about this restaurant."

Grinning, Robin replies, "I'm glad, too, darling. And yes, I've heard nothing but wonderful things. But," He strokes her hand once more, "I don't think I've mentioned how bloody breathtaking you are in that dress tonight, have I?"

"No," she giggles, pulling her hair to one side to give him a tantalizing view of her neck, "I don't suppose you have."

"Well," Robin glances her way and pulls her hand to his lips, brushing a soft kiss to her knuckles again, "you  _do_  look absolutely stunning. You always do, but that dress is… wow."

They both chuckle. "Thank you," Regina says, pushing a piece of hair behind her right ear.

They arrive at Monterrey, the local, somewhat upscale, Mexican restaurant that everyone has been raving about and are seated right away. Luckily, Robin had been using his brain earlier, amidst his rush to calm himself and get ready for the date, and called to make a reservation.

Dinner is going well; conversation flows easily, which he's not surprised about. Talking with Regina is always easy and natural. They have so much in common and are always discovering new things about each other.

After talking about their best friends, and Robin once again insisting they should set Emma and Neal up, he steers the conversation. They've been asking each other questions ranging from silly to slightly more serious, trying to get to know one another better.

"So," he states, taking a sip of his margarita (on the rocks, no salt), "Have you done a lot of traveling in your life?"

Sighing, she admits that she hasn't traveled as much as she once thought she would. "I always dreamt of spending a summer in Paris, but I never took the chance while in college." She tells him how once she graduated school, she got pregnant and was starting her design internship.

"They never had an internship abroad?"

Swallowing her sip of strawberry margarita, she says, "They did… but it's hard to do that with a baby and a boyfriend here at home."

He asks her if she's ever thought of going to Paris now that Henry is older, and she admits that she was looking at flight prices a few months ago. "But then life got busy, projects picked up," she shrugs her shoulder, scrunches her nose up in that adorable way she does, and finishes, "and I just kind of put it on the back burner for now."

He  _ahh_ s and tells her he completely understands. "I went to Italy and Spain when I was younger with my family. It was easier to travel around Europe while living in London, but I've always wanted to go to Australia."

After laughing over Regina's reaction of  _but have you seen how big their spiders are over there!?,_ they discuss the types of things they would do in each country. It doesn't go unnoticed by Robin that they seem to be making the imaginary plans as if they'd be going  _together,_  and he can't help the grin that plants itself on his face.

"We could take cooking classes in Paris," he says, chuckling, "which I probably need a bit more than you."

Giggling, she nods her head in his direction across the table while lifting her eyebrows, saying, "True," but then goes on to say, "After that, we could head to Australia and take surfing lessons. Do you know how to surf?" He tells her he doesn't know how, but he's always wanted to learn.

"This sounds like a nice vacation. Where are the boys during all of this?" He laughs, taking a bite of his steak quesadilla.

"Well," she snorts, swallowing her bite of chicken enchilada, "They could come with us, I suppose. Henry's always wanted to learn how to surf. What about Roland?"

"Ah, well," he washes down his bite of food with his glass of water he'd gotten so he didn't just have alcohol in his system, "Roland is a bit scared of the ocean even since he saw  _Jaws_."

Eyes widening, she asks, "Why on Earth did you show him  _that_  movie?"

He chuckles and rubs his neck sheepishly, explaining that the lad had walked into the living room one night while Robin was doing some work on his laptop. He tells her he was sitting there, movie playing in the background and wasn't even really paying attention to it. "I was distracted with comforting Ro, he said he'd heard a loud, scary noise outside, and well," he takes a deep breath, "I was a right git and forgot to turn the telly off. He sat there cuddled into my side while I finished sending an email, eyes glued to the shark on the screen, until I remembered what was on and quickly switched it over to Netflix."

Laughing, she says, "Poor guy," but goes on to try and make Robin feel better by telling him it happens to the best of parents. She tells him that's almost exactly the same reason Henry wouldn't go into the toy store when he was younger. "He ended up seeing a bit of  _Jurassic Park_  and was terrified of the dinosaur display at the store for months."

He asks her about any books she's read lately. She admits her reading selection has been narrowed down to  _Harry Potter_  and the  _Sisters Grimm_  books as of late with Henry, but she tries to do some reading of her own before bed the nights Henry decides to read independently. Lately she's been making her way through the Outlander novels ever since Mary Margaret recommended them to her. They're taking longer than she first expected to get through. She enjoys, however, being able to curl up under her blankets and get lost in a love story deeply rooted in love and devotion. It's something she's longed for for years, ever since Henry was a pre-schooler and she saw the old man next door helping his wife into the car, the couple sharing an adorable laugh over something the woman had said. She realized in that moment what she'd known deep down for a while back then - she longed for someone to blissfully grow old with. But she and Daniel didn't have what these other couples had. She's not even sure what it was, all she knew was that it was missing. Pulling herself from her thoughts, she hears Robin agree that finding time to read books more suitable for adults is difficult, saying his book shelf has been overrun by  _Dr. Seuss_ ,  _Biscuit the dog_ , and  _Junie B. Jones_  as of late.

They both share a laugh over that as Regina looks impressed, saying, "Wow, he can read Junie B. on his own already?"

"Mostly, yeah," Robin proudly smiles, taking a sip of margarita and nodding, "I still have to read some of her books to him, or at least help him with her bigger, made up words, but he loves her."

Smiling, she tells him how Henry always loved  _Junie B. Jones_  and even got the entire collection for his seventh birthday from her mother. "I'll have to let Roland borrow them sometime."

"Oh," he chuckles, "he would have a fit! Thank you."

She chuckles, saying  _you're welcome_ and assuring him it's no problem. Henry has moved on from Junie B. to the retold fairy tales for a while, so she's sure he won't mind letting the younger boy borrow them. While talking, Regina manages to reach over and take his hand in hers, gently stroking the back of his knuckles as their conversation continues to flow easily.

{*******************************}

Once the dinner is paid for by Robin (he insisted,  _it's a first date, milady. It's only proper._ ), the two of them sit there a while longer while she sips the last remnants of her margarita, and he finishes the last of the chips and queso. They're discussing their college years and how their campuses were so different from each other's when Robin's phone rings.

"It's Tink," he says, his brow furrowing, clicking the talk button, "Tink?"

Regina watches as Robin's eyes close and he sighs out a deep breath. That's never a good sign.

"Alright," he nods, running a hand along his stubble, "I'll be right there."

Ending his call, Robin's eyes turn towards Regina, looking guilty.

Sighing, he explains, "Roland seems to be running a high fever and is throwing up in the bathroom. I hate to do this, but…"

Regina cuts him off, grabbing his hand that's resting on the table, "Robin, it's ok." She smiles sympathetically. "Your child is sick. There's nothing more important than our children. Let's go." Regina stands, grabbing her purse from the back of her chair and turning to face Robin.

He lays his hands on her shoulders and gives them a little squeeze, "I'll drop you off at home and then head over there. We can continue…"

Regina cuts him off again, rolling her eyes with a smirk on her face, "Don't be silly. Your son needs you, don't waste time taking me home. I'll just go with you and take a cab home later."

After arguing the point for a few moments, Regina eventually wins.

{**************************}

When they get to Robin's, Tink is immediately at the door, apologizing to them both.

"Don't be sorry, Tink," Robin says, taking a whimpering, sweating Roland from her arms, "I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks for calling." He and Tink are on an honor system at this point in their friendship, and she knows he'll pay her for watching Roland tomorrow; he has more important things to take care of right now. He makes his way to the kitchen to wet a small hand towel and places it on Roland's forehead.

Regina slips her heels off and meets them in the kitchen where she finds Robin gently rocking Roland in his arms and whispering into his ear that he's going to be okay. Her heart melts a little bit at the sight.

Walking over to the pair, she gently rubs Roland's back, drawing his attention away from his father.

"Gina?" the boy asks in a sleepy, yet miserably sick voice.

She smiles softly, sympathetic to his sickness, "Yeah, baby." She pushes his sweat drenched curls away from his forehead, "I'm here."

"Hold me?" The boy asks, reaching out for Regina.

Regina glances up at Robin, making sure he's okay with it. Over the past several weeks, Regina has grown close to Roland but would never want to step on another parent's toes when it came to comforting their sick child.

Robin doesn't seem to mind and passes Roland off to her. He motions with his head for her to follow him into Roland's bedroom.

Robin pulls back the covers as Regina slips Roland onto his forest animal sheets and sits down next to him, the boy instantly curling up into her lap, whimpering.

Regina begins rubbing his back, asking him what hurts.

"My head and my throat."

Robin stands, saying, "I think I've got some medicine in the cabinet. Let me go check." He exits the room in search of the children's medicine he claims he knows he stashed away the last time Roland was sick like this.

{********************************}

When Robin enters Roland's bedroom again, his breath is knocked out of his lungs.

He can't help but stare at the two of them. Regina is sitting on Roland's bed, rubbing his back and softly humming a lullaby to him as she stares down at his almost sleeping form. His long lashes flutter softly against his skin with each passing stroke of her hand, a giant yawn escaping from his pouted lips. He's obviously trying to keep himself awake, rubbing pitifully at one of his eyes like he always does when he wants to stay awake with Robin and finish a bedtime story. As Roland snuggles his head further into Regina's embrace, Robin muses that his son has never had the comforting touch of a mother, and he figures his son likes having Regina around to soothe him.

Clearing his throat softly, Robin walks further into the room, catching Regina's warm brown eyes.

"I found this," he says in a low voice, holding up the bottle he stashed away a few months ago, "it seemed to do the trick last time."

Robin sits down on the other side of Roland and fills the child's syringe with the medicine.

"Here, my boy," Robin says, gently rubbing Roland's back, turning his son to face him so he can take the remedy. Luckily, Roland has always been an easy medicine taker. He quite enjoys the taste actually, so getting him to take the dosage has never been a problem.

Once Roland swallows his cherry flavored medicine down, he turns back to face Regina, laying his head back into her lap and sighing miserably.

Robin watches as Regina smiles fondly down at his son and continues to smooth his hair over to one side of his forehead, while Robin rubs his legs. Within no time, Roland is fast asleep in Regina's lap.

He can't help but fall even harder for this woman. This woman who gave up a nice evening of adult conversation to sit in his son's bedroom and sing to him, getting him to fall asleep. She's beautiful like this. She's a natural at being a mother, something Robin admires. He can't help looking at her, then down to her hand that is now gently tracing the lines of Roland's face in a calm, steady pattern.

Regina whispers to Robin that she'll sit a few more moments to make sure he's in a deep enough sleep. Robin nods and makes his way into the living room, forcing him to look up from her hands and back into her beautiful, warm eyes.

After a few moments, Regina exits the bedroom, gently closing the door and walking out into the living room.

Robin stands from the couch, smiling toward Regina.

Taking both her hands in his, he points out, "it's almost nine," grimacing a little bit as he nods his head toward the clock on the kitchen microwave. He tells her he ordered a Lyft ride for her while she was in Roland's room that just text him to say they'd arrived.

Regina's eyes slightly widen as she looks at the time. "Oh," she says, bringing their hands up to interlock their fingers before lowering them back down in between them, "I better be going, then."

{**************************}

They walk to the front door, where Regina puts on her heels. When she looks up, her breath catches. They're standing much closer to each other than she had anticipated, and she can't help but glance down at his lips.

Tucking some hair behind her ear, she looks up into Robin's blue eyes.

"I had a really great time tonight," Robin says, smiling down at her. He's taller than her, and being able to look up into his eyes is a nice contrast to what she's had over the past decade. She likes it. It's nice.

"Me too," Regina replies, noticing that he's glancing down toward her lips as well.

Without warning, and even surprising herself, Regina wraps her arms around Robin's neck and tenderly presses her lips to his. Within seconds, Robin is kissing her back, hands finding purchase on her waist and deepening the kiss when she lets out a little  _mhmm_  from the back of her throat, giving him permission.

They stand there, making out like teenagers for a few moments, lips meeting over and over again, while their tongues seek entrance into each other's mouths, and hands roam over each other's backs, until the need to breathe breaks them apart.

Smiling sheepishly, Regina shrugs and says, "Tell Roland I hope he feels better. Sorry he kind of took me from you for a little bit," she states, her nose scrunching up.

"That's alright. I can't say I blame him." Robin grins, shrugging his shoulders ever so slightly, "I'd want you to hold me all night, too, if I were him," he replies cheekily.

They're pressed against one another, barely enough room between their chests for a hand, smiling like love sick fools and staring into each other's eyes. Shaking her head and smiling softly, Regina bites her bottom lip then leans in for one more lingering kiss. Then another, this one just a peck. And another. And another.

Pulling away and bumping her nose against his, she sighs, "Ok, I really need to go. Henry will be home soon."

"I know," he says, gently returning the bump to his nose with one of his own to hers before fully pulling away.

He opens the door for her, leaving his arm on the jam so she has to duck slightly to walk out.

"Goodnight," Regina says, slowly turning on her heels and biting her lip to try and squash the giddy grin on her face.

As she walks away, Regina can't help the little sway she puts in her hips, sauntering away and taunting him just enough to earn a small chuckle from his doorway.

"Bloody minx." She hears Robin mumble under his breath, causing her to giggle to herself all the way down the hallway.

It was a great first date.

{***********************}

Regina walks into her apartment just minutes before Henry and Daniel arrive, a pleased smile still in place when she opens the door for them.

"Hey, Mom," Henry says, shrugging his jacket off and giving her a quick peck to the cheek. "Did you have fun with Robin?" Henry grins. She's starting to believe Henry is trying to play match maker the way he's always grinning at her when he talks about Robin or when he asks if Robin and Roland can come over. She knows he enjoys spending time with the younger Locksley, but there's just… something… about the way he looks at her when Robin is brought up that makes her giddily suspicious.

Glancing toward Daniel, then back to Henry, she smiles, "Yes, sweetheart. We had a good time. Roland got sick, though, so we had to go take care of him."

"Oh," Henry responds, his face falling a little bit, "Well, I hope he's ok."

Once Henry tells his father goodnight, he makes his way back to the bathroom to get ready for bed, leaving Regina and Daniel in the entryway.

"You had a date?" Daniel asks tentatively, his face falling a little bit. Even though Regina no longer has feelings for Daniel, seeing his deflated body language makes her feel guilty.

"Yes. With Robin."

"Oh." He says in a dejected tone, "Well, I hope you had fun, Doll. Goodnight." He keeps his reply short before leaning in to kiss her cheek. It didn't go unnoticed that he called her  _doll_ , the nickname he'd given her when they were first starting to date. It was at the end of their fourth date, when she and Daniel happily walked down the sidewalk, arms wrapped around each other, when they passed a toy store. There was a porcelain doll in the window with dark, raven hair and brown eyes. Daniel joked that the toy looked like her, and she agreed. Thus, the nickname came about and never left. It was sweet at the time, but only made her feel guilt-ridden in this moment.

Eyebrows furrowing slightly in compunction, she tells him, "Goodnight, Daniel."

After closing and locking the door, Regina goes to check on Henry. He's already in bed, reading his newest copy of The Sisters Grimm. He's on the  _Tales From The Hood_  book already. They're another person's, more kid friendly, spin on the Grimm's Brother's fairy tales, and Henry has always loved every different version of fairy tales there are, so he's been hooked on this series ever since his teacher read one in class a few months ago. He's been reading the series a little bit each night for months on end, sometimes asking Regina to read to him, which warms her heart, reminding her of when he was much smaller and she would read him a story every night. She cautions him not stay up too late reading. Even though it's Saturday night, she knows how grumpy he can be if he doesn't get enough sleep.

A little while later, once she has brushed her teeth and changed into her pajamas, which are just yoga pants and a tank top at this point, Regina checks her phone.

_Had a lovely time tonight, darling. Would love to do it again._

Smiling at her phone screen, Regina types back, telling him she had a great time too and they would definitely do it again. Although she believes their lunch date with the boys tomorrow needs to be cancelled so Roland can rest, and Robin agrees with her. He tells her they'll find another day for the four of them to have lunch.

Setting her alarm and locking her phone, Regina tries to sleep. Daniel's face, however, keeps clouding her memory and haunting her dreams. She tosses and turns all night thinking about how rejected and  _sad_  he looked when he found out she had gone on a date. True, she no longer has romantic feelings for Daniel, but something about seeing the man you loved and were together with for twelve years look so dejected does something to a woman. The crestfallen look on his face almost makes her feel guilty for moving on.

She's nervous to entertain the thought of dating someone new. Sure, she had gone on  _a_  date with Graham, but Daniel was the only real relationship she's ever truly had. And she knows in his eyes, she hangs the moon. She can do no wrong where Daniel is concerned, so how does she even know that she'll make a good girlfriend to someone else? She only knows how to be a girlfriend to Daniel, how can she date someone completely new? Someone she'll have to let her walls down in front of, someone who wants to know all about her, every little thing that makes her,  _her_? Thinking of having to open up to someone new, to give herself completely to another man, and let him into every aspect of her life, makes a bout of apprehension bubble up within her chest.

What she needs is space, she decides. Space from Robin. Space from everything. She needs to figure out how to be a good girlfriend to him because once they get serious, which she knows they will eventually, she doesn't want to make any mistakes. She's always strived for perfection in all things, something her mother has instilled in her during her thirty-two years of life, and she wants to be absolutely perfect for Robin. He deserves that.

Huffing and wiping the light sheen of sweat that her doubt and confusion has caused to form on her forehead, she flips over one more time, unable to find a cool spot on her sheets anymore. Eventually she falls into a fitful slumber, wondering how she's going to let Robin down… again.

{************************}

Monday morning rolls around and Robin can't get to work fast enough. He knows Regina is bringing by some wall décor for some of his adjoining offices and some light fixtures for his office, and he can't wait to see her. He hasn't spoken to her since that text Saturday night.

He had been busy on Sunday with a sick Roland, who, luckily, was feeling well enough today to stay with Tink. Robin hopes he'll be able to go to school tomorrow. So far it seems as if his son had only caught a twenty-four hour bug from somewhere. Luckily, it does not seem to be one of the nastier infections that travel around elementary schools at any point of the year like the flu. He doesn't like for Roland to miss school, so all things considered, Robin's glad he got sick on a weekend instead of a school night.

He barely had time to check his phone yesterday, let alone wonder why Regina hadn't tried to communicate in any way. He was distracted though, so he didn't think much about it. This morning, however, now that he was able to take a deep breath and reflect, he realizes she didn't try to contact him either.

Shooting her a quick text of  _Good morning, gorgeous. Hope you had a good day yesterday. Can't wait to see you later,_ he sets his phone down and pulls up the latest changes his team has made on the  _Sleep Tight_  account, as well as a new project that they'd just picked up – a new salsa that's hitting the shelves in a few months and had hired Robin's team to come up with a brilliant new design to capture buyer's attention.

At ten o'clock, Belle buzzes in to tell him that Regina Mills is here. A smile lighting up his face, Robin stands to greet her. He realizes then that she never responded to his text, either, but assumes she was busy with work and knew she'd see him at the office anyway.

When Regina walks in, he's mesmerized by her beauty once again and has to remind himself that he now, kind of, is allowed to admire her like this. They've been on a date, and are clearly attracted to one another, clearly headed in the direction of becoming something great together. She's wearing a dark red, form fitting dress with black panty hose and black heels. He's noticed that she's a fan of the tight fitting dresses, and he can't say he blames her. She has an amazing body and can pull off those dresses any day of the week. Though, to be fair, she could waltz in wearing a potato sack and he'd think she was the most stunning woman in the world.

She's carrying a lamp in one hand and has a large painting stuck under her other armpit. Robin rushes over to help her, taking the painting from her arm and giving her a small smile.

"Morning, love," he says, placing the artwork onto his conference table.

Sitting the lamp down next to the canvas, she greets him with a, "Good morning."

Robin leans in and places a kiss to her lips, but before it can linger for any amount of time, Regina pulls away, tucking her hair behind her ears and looking away.

"Robin, not here…" She tells him. He notices, though, that there seems to be an underlying message of  _not anywhere_  within her words.

"I'm sorry." His brow furrows, and he asks, "Are you alright?" when she takes a small step away from him.

"Yes, I just…" she sighs, looking up into his eyes, "I don't know, Robin."

She shakes her head, her eyes seemingly pleading him to understand her plight. Unsure of what the issue could be, since they've gotten along so well thus far, he says, "I thought we had a good time on Saturday. Was I mistaken?"

"We did, but..." She seems unable to finish a thought this morning.

He takes a small step back, not wanting to distance himself from her, but knowing she needs room to move around and talk, expressing herself fully. Their date had just been the metaphorical cherry on top of what has already been a great friendship. Thinking quickly over everything that's been said between them over these last few months, his mind rapidly comes to the only logical explanation of her sudden change of heart. Her ex.

"Daniel?" He tentatively asks, fairly certain he already knows the answer.

"No, well, yes, but no," she says, scrunching her face up in a confused manner, "I just haven't exactly had a ton of dating experience, and I don't know." Sighing and shaking her head slightly, she continues with a meager quake to her voice, "I'm just so confused right now. I think I just need a little breathing room to figure things out."

Stunned, Robin says lightly, "Alright," and steps away, walking toward his desk, giving her another small smile. He's trying not to show how disappointed he is. He can clearly see that she's struggling with this, can hear the quiver in her voice, and isn't sure how best to handle this situation. He knows that Daniel is the only serious relationship she's ever been in and assumes that comes with a lot more baggage than she's already shared.

Every relationship comes with and leaves you with some sort of baggage. Hell, he has his own baggage with a tag labeled  _Marian's death_  on it, along with other, much smaller pieces of emblematic luggage that have been left with him after his few other failed relationships over the years. He's never been with someone as long as Regina was with Daniel, though, so he has no clue what sort of affects their relationship left imprinted on her heart. He wants things to work with Regina, things just feel  _right_  when they're together, so he's willing to give her anything she wants. If she needs time to figure things out, then he'll give her time.

Motioning between the two of them, he tells her, "Well, I think this could be something really incredible." She walks over to join him near his desk as he finishes with, "So, I'm willing to wait as long as you need. When you're ready, just let me know."

He can see her let out a breath he deduces she has been holding. "Thank you, Robin," she says, giving him a sad smile. Her eyes look a little glossy, but he doesn't want to make her cry, so he doesn't ask.

They stand there for a few moments, staring, until she finally clears her throat and looks back at the conference table, declaring she needs to take the artwork to the other offices.

The rest of the afternoon is a pretty unsuccessful attempt on his part to not think about Regina Mills. After making some small changes to the  _Sleep Tight_  campaign, Robin heads home early to relieve Tink and spend the rest of the day focusing on his son and not on the chocolate brown eyes he longs to stare into or the plump lips he wants to kiss again. The heart he wishes to belong to, since she so quickly is already captivating his own.

Giving her space is going to be difficult, but she needs it. And he would do anything for Regina already. So, he'll wait. However long that may be.

{**************************************}

_*insert nervous laughter* ...just trust me, guys..._


	7. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Thanks so much for all the favorites, follows and reviews after the last chapter. I'm glad y'all are enjoying it… I'm having fun writing it and have some (hopefully) good stuff coming up lol
> 
> This chapter is a mini-beast, so settle in and get comfortable. Please feel free to RT or share the link to my story to help get the word out about this little fic.
> 
> There is a trigger warning at the bottom of the chapter, so if you want to know, take a peek at that before beginning.
> 
> As always, please let me know what you think! Thanks! :)
> 
> {***********************}

**Chapter Seven**

Regina has been trying to distract herself all day. Clicking from project to project on her computer screen, refreshing her email inbox every few seconds, phoning her employee's desks to check on their progress, anything she can think of so she is not sitting at her desk wallowing in self-consciousness. She feels terrible for telling Robin that she needed space this morning. Something in the way he tried to hide his disappointment from her makes her heart feel like someone has reached inside her chest and is squeezing the organ until it crumbles into dust.

After a few hours of working on her farmhouse mansion project, dealing with contractors and the overbearing clients themselves, she heads home. Henry will be home from school soon anyway, and he'll give her enough distraction. At least until it's time to go to bed.

Arriving home, Regina slips out of her heels and carries them to her bedroom, reveling in the coolness of the hardwood floors that are like a balm to her aching feet. She loves her heels, but some days her feet seem to protest the four-inch torture devices.

After placing her heels back onto her shoe rack inside the closet, she walks over to her bed, flopping down and sinking into the plush oasis, letting her legs hang off the side. The quiet is nice; she loves Henry and the noise he and his video games often create in their home, but after the day she's had, it's nice to have a few moments of peace.

Closing her eyes and sighing deeply, Regina's mind betrays her, wandering back to Robin's blue eyes and understanding nature.  _This could be something great...willing to wait as long as you need_ … his words play in a loop in her mind. As if that wasn't torment enough, her mind also brings up images of Daniel and the guilt he'd made her feel. Along with flashes of both men, her mother's words she has heard all her life like  _perfection_  and  _you need to do your best in all things, Regina_  attack her psyche.

Huffing out an irritated breath, Regina sits up. Looking around her room, she tries to find something to distract herself with. There's always the Outlander books she's yet to finish, but reading about a fated love when her love life is a mess seems counter-productive. There's always the television in the living room, but… just then she hears the door slam and a  _Mom?_ called out, cutting through the silence of the apartment like a knife.

Wincing at the slamming of the door, Regina stands and makes her way out into the living room, reminding her son on her way down the hall to not slam the door so hard next time.

Smiling sheepishly at her, Henry lets out an, "Oops, sorry, Mom."

"That's okay," she assures him, meeting him in the entryway to place a kiss to the top of his head. "How was school?" She asks as he unloads his belongings.

"Good," he shrugs, hanging his book bag on the rack and tucking his shoes under the small bench. "We started learning about the Cold War in Social Studies."

As Henry goes on telling her about his day and the things he learned, she finds herself momentarily not thinking about Robin. Or understanding words. Or gentle blue eyes. Again. It's a nice distraction. Maybe she'll keep him up and talking all night long.

Just then, her phone rings. Answering it, she discovers it's the father of one of Henry's classmates, Jefferson Hatterton. Apparently they were assigned a big project today, which he had not gotten around to mentioning just yet, and he wants to know if Henry would like to come over and work on it for a few hours. He offers to cook dinner and have her son back by eight.

Noting her son has already made his way to the kitchen table and is diligently working on his homework (knows he's not allowed to turn the television on until his school work is finished), Regina checks with Henry to see if he wants to go over to Grace's house and work on the project. Once he agrees, Regina affirms it with Grace's father.

"Sounds good, Mr. Hatterton," Regina says, glancing toward Henry, "just text me your address, and I'll have him there shortly. Thank you."

Well, now she doesn't have to plan a meal to cook tonight. That's always a welcome change to her routine. She'd already pulled out a packet of chicken, but, well, that can freeze easily and be cooked another night, so no harm there. With that thought, Regina goes to retrieve her heels from earlier. On her way down the hall, she calls out to Henry, telling him to start putting his shoes on so they can go.

Walking back out, she grabs her keys as Henry picks up his bookbag. He's chattering on about Grace and their project where they have to write letters as if they were children living in the Cold War and make a mobile of the time period and how he was nervous at first to work with a girl, but she turned out to be  _pretty cool_  so he was excited to work with his new friend.

Smirking at her son's rambling and reminding him to take a breath, she turns out the lights and locks the front door.

On the drive over to the Hatterton's house, Regina can't help but mentally kick herself. She's been silently reprimanding herself ever since she left Robin's office this morning. Henry had provided her a few moments of reprieve from her internal torture, but with his face glued to his iPad in the backseat of the car, she is back to her own thoughts.

She had gone in there this morning, completely convinced that she needed space. Seeing him, however, had made her insides quiver. She wasn't just attracted to him physically, but she also felt a connection to him on a deeper level. They had so much in common and got along well. Their children adored each other, which was a bonus, and they liked each other's kids, too. Things with Robin and the boys just felt  _right._ They were like one of Roland's puzzles and all the pieces just seemed to fit together perfectly.

It had all the ingredients needed to make a successful, long lasting relationship. Even after only being friends for almost two months and going on one (very good) date, she just knew they could be something unique. It seemed crazy, even to her, but she just knew Robin was someone special to her - in whatever capacity he'd have her in.

It's that thought that has her furrowing her brow in confusion. If things felt so right, and she enjoyed his company so much, then why the hell was she fighting it?

She knows what it is, the only thing it can be - she is terrified.

She knows that's what it is. But thinking about Robin, and focusing on his kind smile, his sweet dimples and his considerate words calm her and make her feel like he doesn't want her perfection, he just wants  _her_.

It's with that thought that she gathers her nerve and decides to make a pit stop on the way home.

Dropping Henry off at Grace's with a  _be good_  and  _call me if you need anything_ , she gets back in her car and heads in the opposite direction of her apartment.

{*************************}

Robin is turning off the oven and pulling out the freshly made tacos when his doorbell rings.

Going to answer to door, he is more than surprised to see Regina standing there.

"Regina?" He questions, but before he can say anything else, her arms wrap around his neck apprehensively and she's gently pressing her lips onto his in a soft kiss.

His arms instinctively wrap around her waist, pulling her into the apartment without ever breaking their kiss. He slowly deepens it, tongue tracing her bottom lip, seeking permission.

Once inside, Regina closes the door with her foot and moans into this mouth. It's with that sound coming from her mouth that he loses all his senses for a split second. Robin holds Regina in his arms, one hand finding purchase on her hip, while the other tangles in her hair at the base of her neck. Tongues meet for a few moments, while they each exhale short breaths. It's slow, reverent in a way. He loves the feel of her lips on his.

Her lips are so plump, he knows he could kiss them all day and never tire of it. He even pecks that little scar above her lip, and finds himself, once again, wondering how she got it.

He tugs on her hair gently, pulling her face away from his to look at her bewilderedly. His gaze is questioning why she's here and what she's doing. Wasn't it just this morning she said she needed space to figure things out?

"What are you doing here?" He asks curiously, a small smile playing on his face.

"I'm sorry," she says, softly pecking his lips again. "I know I said I wanted space, but," she continues, punctuating her words with feathery light kisses. "I just…" Another kiss and then she suddenly pulls back, looking around the room, "Where's Roland?" She furrows her eyebrows, shaking her head as if coming out of a daze and remembering that he has a son in the apartment. Their snogging session wasn't rushed and hungry but calm and sweet. Regina seemed nervous to even be kissing him. It was enough, though, to momentarily make them both forget about his boy sleeping down the hall.

Chuckling, he tells her he is sleeping off his latest dose of medicine. Stepping away from her body, he asks where Henry is, temporarily forgetting that she was about to explain her sudden change of mind.

She tells him he's at a friend's house working on a project for school. Taking another step apart, Robin takes a calming breath and offers her dinner, saying he made far too much for himself and a sick boy with a diminished appetite.

Regina puffs out a small breath, running her hands through her hair and down her face. She smiles and tells him she'd love to have dinner. Claims she was going to just go home and eat a bowl of cereal since Henry wouldn't be around for dinner.

"Well, we can't have that," he grins, taking her hand and leading her into the kitchen. "There's plenty. Let's eat and then I'll wake Roland to see if he's even hungry."

"Sounds good."

Robin fixes their plates while Regina pours them each a glass of water. She's equally as comfortable in his apartment by now as he is in hers, she's been here enough to know exactly where his cups are, so sharing the chore of getting things ready for dinner can now be done effortlessly.

After a few minutes of pleasant conversation, the air between them changes. Robin sees Regina shift slightly in her chair to face him more.

"So," she begins, wringing her hands together, "you're probably wondering what the hell is wrong with me." She breathes out, chuckling slightly.

Smirking, he swallows his bite of taco and tells her that nothing is wrong with her, that she just seems confused.

"I am, honestly." She sighs before taking a deep breath. Robin listens as Regina confides in him that she's afraid.

"We have so much in common and we get along great," she says, and he agrees.

"We do, it's one of the things that makes this," he motions his hands in between their bodies, "so easy."

"Exactly," she says, smiling brightly, "but that's also what scares me. I've never had  _easy_. It was easy with Daniel in the beginning, but after a while," she waves her hand around in the air, "it became such a hassle to keep the relationship going." She tells him again how Daniel has been the only man she ever seriously dated. She mentions another man, Graham, that she went on one date with, but other than that, Daniel was all she's ever known.

"You know I don't want to be with him anymore," she continues, looking down at the hand he's just picked up in his. He secretly likes hearing her say she doesn't want to be with Daniel; makes him feel more confident in what he's pursuing with her. "But it's scary to think about being with someone else." She looks up into his eyes, hers almost pleading for him to understand her plight.

His breath seems to catch in his throat as he realizes she wants this to be something, too. She feels the connection already as well. His teeth sink into his bottom lip before he lets it go to smile brightly at her, bringing her hand up to his lips, kissing her knuckles.

"I know it's scary, Regina," he confides. He tells her how he's only dated two other women since Marian died, and both times, it had only lasted a few months. There was Ashley, sweet girl, but he only dated her for six months two years after Marian passed. Then Jasmine came along a few months after that, but they fizzled out only a few short weeks, a month or so maybe, later before it could go anywhere serious. He and Jasmine ended more than a year ago, and since then it's just been him and Roland. "And I was fine with that. Gave me time to focus on raising my son; we were happy, just the two of us," he says, running a hand over his face. "But, Regina, I haven't felt this type of connection with anyone in a very long time," he adds, looking deep into her expressive eyes. She's the only person he's ever known that can say so much with just a look in her eye without having to speak any words at all. Her eyes are like a window into her carefully guarded soul, and it's one of the things he finds most attractive about her.

She's staring back at him with a small, barely noticeable, smile on her lips.

"I'm glad you feel it, too." She lets out a small breath, and Robin lets out one to match before they both take a few more bites of food. They've hardly touched their dinner; having such a serious talk over food probably wasn't their smartest decision.

She tells him how Daniel thinks she's perfect, she can do no wrong in his eyes, and it's always been that way. And her mother always  _demanded_  perfection from her, in everything she did - school, horseback riding, dance class, business - so she was terrified to try and be perfect for him, saying with a quiver in her voice, "I'm afraid I might let you down."

He realizes with that confession just how much pressure her mother, and even Daniel, have put on her throughout her life. He doesn't want perfection, doesn't  _need_  perfection.

Closing his eyes momentarily and letting out an understanding sigh with a smile on his lips, he tells her, "I just need you." Shrugging as his eyebrows scrunch together slightly. "I don't need perfection. Perfection is overrated, and besides," he says, straightening his napkin on the table, "no one is perfect."

She lets out a small laugh, wiping away a stray tear and telling him her mother would disagree.

"Well, it's a good thing I want to date  _you_  and not your mother," he replies casually, standing and collecting their dishes from the table. They've somehow managed to eat enough to fill their stomachs, and if he's hungry later, well, he can always sneak into the kitchen and have a midnight snack.

He walks over to the sink to deposit the plates there. As he's turning on the water to wash over the dishes, he feels her arms wrap around his middle. Her nose buries itself into his shoulder blade, and he feels her exhale.

Turning off the faucet and into her embrace, Robin leans down and kisses her slowly. He lets his lips linger on hers for a while, just happy to be touching her. No tongues, just two sets of lips coming together in a consoling embrace.

When he finally pulls away, he looks down into her eyes. She's looking up at him through her long eyelashes and smiling happily.

"So," he says, brushing her hair behind her ear for her, "I'm not perfect. You're not perfect." He shrugs, jutting his lips out into a playful pout, "What do you say we give this a shot anyway?"

Giggling and letting a breath out, she jokingly rolls her eyes and says, "Thank God you didn't say 'let's try to be perfect for each other'."

He tilts his head back then, laughing and thinking to himself he's glad he didn't say it because he had definitely been thinking it. He knows Regina thinks she's not good enough, but he has faith in her, in them. No one is perfect, every couple has their issues, but in his gut he just knows that the two of them can be spectacular.

"No." He chuckles. "Although..." he doesn't finish his thought, but instead leans down to place another soft kiss to her lips. Pulling away and bumping her nose with his, he bites his lower lips.

She mirrors his action and bites her lip, too, mumbling, "I think another shot at this sounds like a great idea."

God, he wants to kiss her again, deeper and more fully this time, but he also needs to check on his son.

She pecks his lips one more time, then steps away. "Do you want me to heat up a taco for Roland while you go wake him up?"

Smiling down at her, thinking again how easily they work together, he says, "Sure, thank you." With one last short kiss to her lips, he walks toward Roland's bedroom.

Roland is pleased to see Regina there when Robin carries him into the kitchen, and the boy cuddles into her chest as he eats his dinner.

He falls asleep against her soon after finishing his last bite, and Regina offers to tuck him in.

Watching her walk toward his son's room, carrying his sleeping form, Robin can't help the fluttering in his stomach at the image of this wonderful woman being in their life now.

{**********************}

Once she tucks Roland into bed and places a soft kiss to his forehead, Regina makes her way back into Robin's living room.

She had confessed a lot to him tonight but finds it so easy to talk to him. He seems to be willing to listen, something she isn't used to, and she likes it. Daniel always assured her their problems could just be swept under the rug,  _no one really has issues when they're in love_  is how he'd always explained it to her. And Mother would roll her eyes, saying there were bigger problems in the world than hers, if and when she ever confided in Cora. So, Regina has learned over the years to just keep things bottled up, but it's nice that Robin is different. It's a nice change from what's become her normal.

Robin is sitting on the couch when she makes her way into the living room.

"Hey," she says softly, glancing at the clock in the kitchen, "I hate to run, but Henry will be home soon."

Standing up from the couch, he replies, "Yeah, of course," and wraps his arms around her. They stand there, hugging in the middle of his living room for a few minutes, breathing each other in, neither one quite ready to let go.

Sighing, Regina pulls away, looking up into Robin's blue eyes. "Thank you for listening tonight," she says, running her hand down his cheek, "and for giving me a second chance."

"Oh, darling," he breathes out, "you never lost your first chance." His words cause her stomach to do a summersault, but she's happy to let it flip all over the place if it means this wonderful man is saying these words to her. "You're scared. I can relate. We can take things slowly and see where they go."

"That sounds lovely." She kisses his lips again. After all the kissing they've done tonight, she finds she is quite addicted to the feel of his lips on hers. It's better than any cup of coffee, and the caffeine it fuels her with each morning, surging through her veins.

They make their way over to the front door where she turns to face him again.

"Goodnight, Robin."

"Goodnight, Regina," he echoes, pulling her to him for one final kiss, this one a bit stronger than all the others tonight, and it takes her breath away in the best way possible.

Walking out of the elevator and to her car, Regina can't get the smile playing on her lips to go away. She'd been an idiot telling Robin she needed space, knows that now. He's wonderful and patient, a good man. She doesn't always appreciate things, but she does him.

Shaking her head at her own thoughts, she climbs into her car and buckles herself in. Glancing up at Robin's apartment building one last time, she pulls off.

When Regina gets home, she takes out her phone. Smiling, she sees Robin has already sent her a text.

_Can't wait to see you again. Just the two of us. How does dinner Friday night sound?_

_Sounds excellent. Can't wait._ She replies back, adding a kissy face emoji.

Sighing contently, Regina flops her phone onto her mattress and heads to the bathroom to take a quick shower. Mr. Hatterton had called a few minutes ago to let her know Henry would be home in twenty minutes, so she figures she has just enough time to get ready for bed.

Once Henry is home and in bed sleeping, Regina can't help but smile at the peaceful feeling she has surrounding her. She's glad she went to Robin's tonight. And she's even happier that his feelings seem to match hers. She is excited to see where this goes.

{***********************}

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say someone looks smitten."

Rolling her eyes at her ever peppy right-hand woman, Mary Margaret, Regina quickly locks her phone and tries to hide the smile that has begun to bloom on her face. Robin had sent her a flirty text assuring her that even though he hasn't seen her yet today, he is confident that she looks  _bloody gorgeous_  and he hopes she has a great day. She takes the coffee Mary is offering her as they make their way down the long hallway that leads to Regina's office. It's nearly lunchtime, too late to be drinking another (third) cup of the caffeine according to Mary Margaret, but they have a lot to do today, so she'll happily guzzle down the dark brew all day if necessary.

It's Wednesday, and Robin and Regina have not stopped texting since their impromptu taco dinner date at his house Monday night. Regina felt stupid, almost like a child, after she gave Robin such mixed signals, but luckily, Robin was quick to understand. He's considerate. Regina likes that.

Looking over to Mary Margaret, Regina simply gives her a tight smile.

"Alright, so," Mary says, lifting her eyebrows, "clearly I'm not getting any of  _those_  details."

"No," Regina smiles almost too sweetly, "you're not. How is Dr. Whale's office project coming along?" Whale is a well known doctor in town and had hired Regina a few weeks ago to redo his offices in a more modern look. She has several of her best employees working to make the project perfect.

After getting the mandatory updates from Mary on all of her company's latest accounts, Regina makes her way into her office, telling Mary Margaret to go check on Ariel's part of the Whale project.

"Right away, Boss!" She hears Mary call over her shoulder.

Sitting down at her desk, Regina takes out her phone again.

_I've been thinking about you all morning._

She smiles at the text. Biting her lip, she responds, telling him she's been thinking about him, too, and can't wait for their date on Friday.

Friday is still two days away.  _How am I going to make it two more days?_  Regina wonders to herself.

{***********************}

Friday finally rolls around and Robin can hardly make it through the work day. He's been texting Regina practically all day every day during working hours and having their nightly phone calls this week. He just can't seem to get enough of her. And based on her equally frequent responses, it would seem she can't get enough of him, either.

"Tink," Robin begins when she answers the phone, "I have a proposition for you."

"Alright. What is it?"

"How would you like to make double your money tonight while babysitting?" He's already asked Tink to watch Roland tonight, but they had thought Emma would watch Henry like she normally does. Turns out, Emma has a date tonight, and Regina called him earlier in a frenzy saying she couldn't ask Daniel or her mother just yet and that she didn't know what to do. He told her to breath, not to worry, and that Tink would watch both boys. Regina gently reminded him that he couldn't just assume Tink would do it. Told him no matter how good a friend the girl may be, they still needed to check with her that it was okay.

"I'd say I'm no fool," Tink laughs. "What's the catch, Robin?"

"Well," Robin starts, feeling foolish, "I was wondering if you could watch Henry as well?" He nervously rubs the back of his neck. "He's not with his dad this weekend, but Regina and I have plans to go to dinner tonight."

"Oh," Tink says, "well sure! Henry's a cool kid. Not a problem. I can even spend the night if, uh, you know… you need more time after dinner." He can practically hear Tink smirking through the phone. He's positive if the blonde were standing in front of him, she'd be elbowing him in the ribs and wagging her eyebrows. Sometimes Tink acts more like a frat boy than a young woman who is about to graduate and start a career, and he loves her for it. She's laid back, fun, and a joy to be around. She keeps him young. He's always thankful that he found Tink when Roland was a baby; she's practically like a sister to him now.

He laughs dryly. "I don't think that will be necessary. We are trying to take things slow. But thank you for the offer."

"Yeah, yeah…"

"Thank you, Tink. I'll see you at five," he says, finishing his phone call. Now he just needs to make it through the rest of the day.

{*************************}

_All taken care of. Tink is happy to watch both boys._

Sighing with relief, Regina responds to his text. She was worried Tink wouldn't be able to watch Henry and then she'd have to either take him to Daniel and go through all of  _that_  again, or even worse, call her mother and tell her she has a date. If that had happened, she would have had to kill Emma for having a date and not being able to babysit.

_Thank goodness. What time do I need to be there?_

_She'll be here at 5. I still feel like a right git for not picking you up for our date. You sure I can't come and get you lot?_

_That wouldn't make much sense if we're going right back to your place to drop Henry off. It's fine! I'll see you at 5 :)_

With that, Regina closes her phone and focuses on work the rest of the day. It's already half past noon and she's barely managed to get anything done. Her farmhouse mansion clients, George and Sophia King, called this morning to, once again, change something in the design, and Regina had to lay down the law so to speak, and let them know they couldn't make many more changes or otherwise the project would never get finished. Luckily, Mr. King understood and said he'd try to make sure his wife didn't demand anything else be altered.

With that behind her, Regina focuses on Robin's last two remaining office spaces and one of Dr. Whale's waiting room designs. Before long, she looks at the clock and sees that it's almost three o'clock. She needs to go home, shower and look presentable for her date.

Shutting down her computer and turning off the lights, Regina tells Mary Margaret on her way out that's she's leaving.

"So soon?" Mary questions. "It's only three o'clock!"

"I have… a date tonight." Regina says, tucking the hair behind the ears. Mary has been her employee since day one, and she loves the girl. She'd hardly admit that aloud, but she does. She hired Mary right out of college. She was only a few years younger than Regina, and she had annoyed her to no end with her never ending enthusiasm and incessant positivity at first, but over the years she's come to appreciate Mary's outlook on life. She may not open up to her too much about her personal life (or anyone for that matter other than Emma), not that there's been much to tell as of late, but she considers Mary a good friend and knows she'll want all the details about this date.

"A date?! Regina!" Mary Margaret stands from her desk, walking closer to Regina and grabbing she shoulders. "With who? I didn't know you were dating anyone."

Rolling her eyes at the girl's excitement, Regina explains, "it's only a second date. Well, third technically but second official date."

"Well from all your secrecy, I can tell it's someone you really like," the younger woman replies with a knowing smirk on her face. "Just be careful and have fun!"

"Thank you. I'll see you Monday, Mary." Regina says, hoping in the elevator.

{****************************}

Traffic had been a nightmare on the way home, so Regina now only has a little over an hour to get ready. It may seem like enough time, but she wants to knock Robin off his feet, so she needs all the time she can get to make sure her hair and makeup look perfect.

She sends Henry off to his room to finish homework and clean up a little while she gets ready.

"Where are you going, Mom?"

"Robin and I are having dinner. You're going to go play with Roland and Tink while we're out," she explains, figuring there was no sense in hiding the fact that she was having dinner with Robin. Henry was going to be at his apartment tonight, he'd figure it out anyway.

"Awesome! I knew the two of you would get together!" Henry exclaims, hopping up and running to his room.

With that, Regina makes her way to her room with a smile on her face. She's glad Henry seems to approve, not that she had any doubt he would. A quick shower and a blow dry later, she's ready for her makeup. Robin told her earlier in the week that he wanted to take her somewhere nice, so she decides to wear a little more makeup than the last time. She makes sure she puts on her best foundation, blush, garnet colored lipstick and a generous coat of mascara. Her lashes are naturally long, but her favorite mascara she just discovered a few weeks ago makes them look even longer, and she's been obsessed with it ever since.

She chooses to wear a form fitting, cobalt blue dress that sits just slightly below her knee. The zipper runs all the way from the bottom of the dress to just below her shoulder blades, and there's a black bow that ties at the top of the dress in the back. She normally doesn't wear blue, but this dress was just  _too_  sexy not to buy when she saw it a few months ago. She and Emma had been out shopping, and the blonde had finally convinced her it was worth the price. Now, she's just glad she has an excuse to wear it.

Putting in her second earring, she calls out to Henry, "get your shoes and let's go!"

She's running a little behind, so she sends Robin a text to let him know about the traffic from earlier and that they'd be there soon.

{***********************}

Robin sees Regina's text about running late and assures her it's fine. Their reservation isn't until six thirty anyway, so they'll have plenty of time to get there.

A few minutes before quarter til six, his doorbell rings.

Opening up his front door, Robin's jaw almost hits the floor. Regina is standing there in a blue dress that just  _fits_. It suits her body like a glove.

Taking a deep breath, Robin forces himself to act like an adult in front of Henry.

"Hey, you lot," he says, clapping the boy on his shoulder. "Come on in."

As Regina and Henry make their way in, Robin can't help but scan his eyes over her one more time. When he finally reaches her eyes, he's met with her staring right back at him, smirking and cocking one eyebrow up toward the ceiling.

"Henry," Robin clears his throat, "Roland's in his room with Tink. Why don't you go on back there and play?"

"Ok," Henry shrugs. "Bye Mom! Have fun!" He says, kissing his mom's cheek and taking off his shoes to leave by the front door.

"Bye, sweetheart," she says, tucking his shoes closer to the wall so no one trips on them. Typical mom, he muses, noting his and Roland's shoes from today that sit haphazardly by the front door, too, and pushing them closer to the wall with his foot. "You be on your best behavior for Tink. Understand?"

"Got it!" Henry yells, already halfway to Roland's room.

Regina turns to face Robin and he snaps his eyes up from where they'd been looking at her rear. He bites his lip like a kid who just caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He couldn't help but stare when she turned away from him. The back view of the dress was just as nice, if not better, than the front side.

Giggling, Regina says, "See anything you like?"

"All of it," he breathes, taking her by the hand and pulling her into his chest.

He kisses the top of her head and takes in the scent of her shampoo wafting from her hair. It's floral scented and clean, reminds him of clean laundry and roses mixed together.

"You look absolutely stunning."

"Thank you," she says, a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks, as she runs a hand down the front of her dress.

Just then, Tink comes out from Roland's room laughing at the young boy's antics.

"Alright, love birds," she says, smirking. "You go have fun. I've got the boys. All night if need be," she finishes, winking at both Regina and Robin.

Rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, he reminds Tink that they've already discussed that point earlier and it won't be necessary.

Looking sheepishly over at Regina, who is just smirking at him and Tink, he says, "Shall we go, milady?"

"Certainly. Goodnight, Tink." Regina says, waving in Tink's direction. "Call us if you need anything."

With that, Robin and Regina make their way to dinner at Chops. It's an upscale steakhouse that everyone always raves about, and Robin knew right away this is where he wanted to take Regina on their date. It normally has a three month waiting period to get in, but Robin had done some advertising for the owner years ago when he was just getting his restaurant started. He's always telling Robin he owes him a favor, so he was more than glad to call it in for tonight.

When they arrive, they're seated on the second floor of the restaurant. Their table is against one of the floor to ceiling windows that overlooks the city.

"This view is beautiful!" Regina says, mesmerized by the city lights below.

"Yeah," Robin takes ahold of Regina's hand, "it most certainly is." He finishes, looking at her and not the city view. Regina looks over at him then, clearly noticing that he wasn't talking about the view and shakes her head playfully at him, chuckling under her breath. He likes making her laugh, even slightly, and if him saying cheesy, romantic clichés (no matter how much he actually means them) makes her smile, well, then he'll keep saying them all night.

They share a bottle of white wine, and they each order their meals. Regina gets the grilled chicken with a side salad, dressing on the side, while Robin opts for a hearty steak and fully loaded potato. While enjoying their food and the soft, live music that is playing, they talk about work and how their projects are going.

Robin tells Regina now that his  _Sleep Tight_  campaign is almost finished, his team is focusing on a new salsa advertising. They're currently trying to think of a catchy slogan to draw people in.

Looking over at her as she sips her wine, he asks, "How are the farmhouse clients?" which earns him a hearty eye roll. Regina tells him how she had to put her foot down this week, and she hopes it doesn't cost her any future work from them.

"I'm sure it won't," he assures her, rubbing the back of her hand that is resting on the table. "Would it be so bad if they didn't hire you again?"

"I guess not," she concedes, saying she has a few other lucrative accounts that can keep her business running. She tells him how the project has been a blast to work on, but that Mrs. King has just been a mood killer each and every time she's had to interact with the woman.

"I'm hoping they at least recommend me to some friends of theirs. Mr. King mentioned his brother needed his winter home redone, so there's that," she says, taking the last bite of her salad.

Finishing his steak, he agrees, saying it'll be good to get some more clients out of this whole nightmare.

Chuckling, she tells him he's right before saying, "So, tell me about your family. You mentioned you moved to the States for your mom's job?"

"Yeah," he nods his head, taking a sip of his drink, "Mum is a cardiothoracic surgeon. She was offered this really great position at the Children's Hospital of West Virginia, and we all just knew she couldn't turn it down."

"That's amazing," Regina gushes, "sounds like she's had a great career."

Robin chuckles, "Oh, she has. She's finally retiring this year and still claims she could work another twenty."

Laughing, she tells him that's a good attitude to have about it, and he agrees. He goes on to tell her how his dad was a pediatrician. "My parents met in medical school before mum decided to go the surgeon route. Dad always jokes that he married up when he finally got her to find time for a wedding. Says he fell in love with her the moment she stepped into Biology 101 and he's never looked back."

Since they're already on the topic of families, Robin decides to ask about hers. He knows, based on things she's already revealed to him, that he is not the biggest fan of her mother.

"Oh," she breathes out, "my parents are still together. My mom is a retired lawyer who spends all her time at the horse tracks with her friends. I may have mentioned that already?" She smiles, and he smiles right back, telling her  _you did, yeah_. She says her mom worked her whole career at a top law firm in Maine before moving the family to New York when she got offered a partnership at  _Gold & Gold Associates _when Regina was in middle school. Mr. Gold had apparently had a very public falling out with his son, Giddeon, and was in need of a new partner. He and Cora had worked several cases together over the years and knew each other from law school, so it was an easy choice for him to make.

"What about your father?" He asks, not disappointed with the way her face lights up.

"Daddy is wonderful," she beams, sipping her wine. She tells him her father owns his own horse ranch on the outskirts of the city. "They breed racehorses there, which is why mother has always loved the track so much. But they also give lessons to children and teens, which is the part Daddy loves. He's actually the one that taught me to ride."

"You ride?"

She chuckles, "Yeah, it was always something fun for me and my dad to do on the weekends. It kind of… got us away from my mother for a few hours."

Laughing, he tells her he's glad she and her father had something in common that also gave them some reprieve, which earns him a hearty laugh from Regina.

As the waiter takes their plates away, Robin can't help but grab ahold of her hand again. He likes touching her and feeling connected to her in that way. She smiles back at him as he begins to gently rub his thumb along the top of her hand, and she glances over to the dance floor where a few couples have started dancing to the live pianist.

"Would you care to dance, love?"

Turning to face him again, she says shyly, "Only if you want to."

Standing up, he gently tugs on her hand and confirms that he does.

{**********************}

When they get to the dance floor, Regina can't help but smile like a giddy school girl. In all the years with Daniel, he never once danced with her in public. Sure, they'd had a few dances in their kitchen or living room over the years, but it never lasted very long. Daniel didn't like to dance and claimed he felt like he looked stupid doing it. He was always concerned with how others viewed him.

Robin, however, seems more than willing to dance with her. His arms fall into place, one holding her hand and the other around her waist. She can't help the butterflies that are swarming around in her stomach right now. His arms just feel like perfection holding her like this.

They're not the best dancers, tripping over toes once or twice, but they giggle their way through the mistakes. She just enjoys being in his arms, free from worry of what other people in the restaurant think of her. It's nice. She steps on his toe again and giggles, looking up to apologize, but she stops the words from coming out. He's looking into her eyes so deeply, and all she can think about is how she hasn't kissed him since that night at his apartment. Pursing her lips, she tilts her head up, signaling to Robin that she's okay with being kissed in public, wants him to, in fact.

Grinning, he leans in to her, opening his mouth to press against her open mouth before their lips close around each others. The kiss moves her back a little, but she doesn't mind, smiles into his lips and plays it off as a sway to the music. She leans in to match his kiss with just as much concealed force, quirking her eyebrows up in pleasure, before pulling apart. Catching the corner of her bottom lip in her teeth, she looks around the dance floor to see if they've garnered the attention of any other dancers. Luckily, everyone seems to be too lost in their own worlds to notice their kiss. Good, she thinks, leaning in to press a more gentle kiss to his lips this time, enjoying the way his stubble gently tickles against her skin.

Turning her eyes up toward Robin, she notices that he's looking into her eyes again.

Smiling brightly before drawing her lips together, she asks, "What is it?"

"Nothing," he says, sheepishly smiling down at her. "You just look so beautiful tonight. Are you having fun?"

"I am," she tells him, laying her head on his chest, "I love to dance. This is lovely and the music is nice."

"It is. I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. You deserve it," he finishes, pressing his cheek to the top of her head.

They stay there for the next two songs, swaying to the music and talking softly. They seem to have found their rhythm together, not making nearly as many clumsy mistakes as their first dance. Regina is so caught up in his blue eyes and his affectionate words that she almost misses the pianist announcing his break.

They make their way back to the table so they can pay for their meals and she can collect her purse.

Once they're in the car, Robin says, "It's only eight thirty. Tink did say she didn't mind staying late. Would you like to go somewhere else? Coffee or dessert, perhaps?"

"We could go grab some coffee. I know where to get the best cup in town," Regina says with a smug smirk on her face.

"Oh?" Robin lifts his eyebrows, looking in her direction, "Where's that?"

"My apartment," Regina finishes, looking straight into Robin's suddenly confused blue eyes. Poor guy. She says she needs space, then shows up to make out with him. Says they need to take it slow, now she's inviting him back to her apartment. She really needs to get ahold of this.

"Al-alright," he stammers. "That sounds good." She can tell he's trying to sound calm about the implication she just made. She needs to make sure he knows there will be no sex tonight.

Arriving at her apartment complex, the air is thick with tension. They finally make it to her floor and her hands fumble to get the keys out and into the lock. Once inside, their lips are instantly on each other's.

Robin closes the door and pushes Regina up against it, his hands on either side of her head, pressing her, in the most gratifying way possible, into the backside of her front door.

Their lips meet over and over again in wet, messy, frantic kisses. His lips make their way from her lips, to her jaw, down to her neck, and back up again, while she leans her head back and sighs at the glorious feeling of his lips on her skin.

Regina pushes Robin back slightly so she can move them into the living room. His lips feel amazing on her skin, but she wants them to be more comfortable. She takes Robin's hand and guides him to her soft couch. Pushing him onto the middle cushion, Regina hikes her dress up just enough that she can straddle his lap. Once situated, her lips are on his again while his hands grip her hips. This time, it's her lips that move from his mouth, down to his jaw and neck and back again, all while he leans his head back, letting low groans fall from his lips.

{*********************}

His hands begin to roam over her glorious body, still wrapped in that damn blue dress that has been driving him crazy all night. She's pulled it up enough that he can caress her smooth legs and just slightly above her knees. Her hands are roaming over him as well. She's unbuttoned most of the buttons on his olive-green shirt and he can feel her hands on his bare chest now.

Pulling their lips apart, and hearing Regina let out a small grunt, he smirks at her and tucks the hair behind her ears.

Looking into her eyes, he sees some clarity coming back to her as their hormones die down a notch.

"No sex tonight," she reminds him, panting and slightly shaking her head.

"I know," he smiles, nodding and taking a breath. He knows Regina wants to wait a little bit longer, which is understandable, this is only their second true date after all.

Smiling down at him, Regina moves her hands to glide over the stubble on his cheeks then rake through his hair before resting them at the bottom of his neck. She leans down and grazes her plump lips along his ear lobe and she whispers, "That doesn't mean we can't do this." And with that, her lips are back on his.

Her kisses make him a weak man. And with her straddling him like she is, he won't be able to hide his attraction much longer. She's one of the most beautiful women he's ever known, and he can't believe he's the lucky bastard that is allowed the good fortune to snog her like this. Robin lifts Regina up and flips her so that she's lying on her back on the couch with him hovering over her. The little squeal that escapes her lips in the process doing things to him.

"God, you are so beautiful," he says, stroking her cheek and lowering his lips to cover hers in a slow, heated kiss.

Moving his lips down to her neck, his hands roaming up and down her sides while her hands stroke up and down his back, he hears another moan escape her throat.

"I could stay here all night and snog you like this," he says, as she giggles at his words.

"I wouldn't be opposed to that," she says, breathing a few deep breaths. "But we have to go back eventually so I can get Henry."

Looking down at her and pulling his lips away, he utters, "You're right. And I'd never hear the end of it from Tink."

Sharing a grin with each other, they agree they need to get up soon. But not quite yet.

"Maybe just five more minutes?" Regina asks, scrunching her nose up in that adorable way she does.

"Definitely," he growls, lowering his body back onto hers, reveling in the feel of her body beneath him and her lips touching his.

It doesn't go any further than roaming hands and heated kisses, but  _god_ , it is enough for him to know that he's completely besotted with this woman, and he hopes she feels the same way.

{*****************************}

Walking into his apartment, their hair slightly disheveled, Tink just raises her eyebrows at them but doesn't say anything about it.

"How was dinner?" She asks, giggling.

"It was great. Good food, good music. The place is nice." Robin tells her quickly, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

Tink tells them that the boys were well behaved and fell asleep about an hour ago.

They thank Tink and she takes her leave, grinning the whole time like the cat who got the cream.

"That girl is trouble." Robin laughs, turning to face Regina, who has made her way into his kitchen.

Walking up behind her, he wraps his arms around her middle and kisses the side of her neck.

"Tonight was good," Regina says. "Better than good. It was great. Thank you." Sighing, she turns in his arms and kisses his lips.

"It was. And you're welcome… you're quite a good kisser, too, so that was nice," he grins, kissing her again, this one slightly lingering. Looking into her eyes, he notices they're shining, almost as if she's on the verge of tears.

"What is it?" He asks, concern coloring his features.

Shrugging and sighing a small sigh, she tells him in a raspy voice, "I just never thought I'd have this."

As she runs her hands through his hair, he smiles down at her. "I know what you mean, love. This just feels so right."

"It really does, Robin," she says, placing her hands on his shoulders. "And thank you for dancing with me tonight. Daniel never danced with me, and I love to do it."

Suddenly disliking Daniel even more than he already does, he says, "Well, then we shall dance  _all_  the time." How could anyone not want to dance with this woman? Or give her anything her heart desires? He takes her hands and pulls her closer to him, humming a soft melody into the quiet of the kitchen. She lets out a slight giggle at his response, stepping back from the embrace and taking a dramatic bow before clasping their hands together to slowly sway to the melody he's humming. Robin knows when to be serious but has never had a problem goofing off and letting loose; Regina more often than not seems to have walls up and has a hard time being silly, so it makes him smile that she can loosen up around him and truly be herself.

They stay there for a few more minutes, slowly dancing in a small circle while looking into each other's eyes, only illuminated by the lamps in the living room and the light that has been left on above the sink. They share short, sweet kisses until Regina sighs and says, "I should really be getting Henry home."

They move to Robin's guest room where she collects Henry from underneath the comforter he's buried himself into. He may be ten but Regina assures Robin that the boy can still sleep through a considerable amount of disturbances, which she's thankful for.

Walking them back out into the living room, he kisses her on the cheek and sends them on their way with a promise of another date soon. With that, Robin closes the door with a smile on his face.

{*******************************}

A month after their date at Chops, Regina finds herself happier than she's ever been. She's nicer to her employees, everyone at the office knows about their relationship, her mother's phone calls aren't quite as unbearable, and seeing Daniel and his kicked puppy dog face no longer make her feel guilty. He hasn't been outright rude about her dating Robin, but the past month has definitely made him show his jealous side a little bit more.

Things have been going quite nicely for her and Robin, though. They've gone on several other dates and spend majority of their free time with their boys together. On the weekends when Daniel has Henry, Regina finds herself at Robin's spending time with him and Roland.

At first she thought she might be overwhelming them with her presence, but Robin has assured her over and over again that he wants her there even when Henry isn't with her. He just wants to be with her as much as possible.

Her phone rings, interrupting her happy thoughts. Glancing down at the caller i.d. though perks her right back up.

"Hey, handsome," she croons into the phone.

"Hello, gorgeous. What are you doing for lunch?" He says, his British accent going straight to her middle.

"I just brought some leftovers from dinner last night. What did you have in mind?"

He asks her if she wants to eat at Granny's instead while he has free time in between his two big pitch meetings today. She smiles, leaning back in her chair as she tells him she would love to. They agree to meet there in half an hour.

{****************************}

Walking into Granny's thirty minutes later, Regina spots Robin. He's wearing his navy suit today with a white button up shirt and a navy tie. Very simple but  _very_  sexy.

She greets him with a hug and quick kiss to his lips, while thinking she would much rather take him back to her apartment and let him have his way with her. They haven't had sex yet, even though it's been a month. But Regina has only ever slept with two other people (and does a one night stand with Graham really count?) so she's nervous that she won't be good enough for him. She told Robin of this fear a few weeks ago while he was knuckles deep inside of her. Clearly not her best timing to drop a piece of baggage like that, but Robin, like always, was understanding and said he'd wait however long she needed, while curling his fingers up inside her wet heat. Told her he's only been with a few other women besides Marian, anyway.

_Fumbling into the living room, Regina plops onto Robin's couch cushion, shushing Robin and telling him they didn't need to wake up Roland._

_Chuckling, Robin assures her, "He's asleep. Besides, Roland could sleep through a train driving through his room. And," he captures her lips for good measure as his hands roam down her sides to cup her rear, "his door is closed."_

_Letting out a breathy laugh of her own into the space between them, Regina says, "Ok, continue on then," as Robin situates them on the couch._

_He hovers above her, staring into her eyes. "God, you're beautiful."_

" _You're not so bad yourself," she jokes, pulling him by the base of his neck onto her lips._

_After a few heated kisses, his hands reach for the bottom of her shirt. Running his hand under the shirt's material, he cups her breast, giving her nipple a quick tweak through her bra's fabric before moving to the next one._

_Moaning, Regina slides her hands to the hem of his t-shirt and lifts it up over his head, their lips breaking just long enough to take it off. She tosses his shirt across the room as his lips crash back onto hers before they make their descent down to her throat._

_Robin's hands leave her now very hard nipples, and make their way to her pants. He unbuttons the button and begins lowering the zipper. This isn't the first time he's had his hands (or mouth) on her lower parts, but each time he makes his way down there, it sends nervous butterflies into her stomach. She wore her skinny jeans today and knows that they'll be problematic to take off, so she sits up slightly to help in the process._

_Once her pants have been tossed over with his shirt, his hands run up and down her legs in a loving caress. "Mmm," she moans, "your hands always feel so good."_

" _Yeah?" he says, hooking his finger in the top of her lace thong and sliding them over enough to slip his fingers into her heat._

_She breathes out a, "Yes… s—soft," as his finger dips further into her._

" _You're so wet," he tells her, capturing her lips again, "feels so good."_

_She can feel his hard length pressed against her, and she wants nothing more than to unzip his jeans and take him in her hands. The position they're in makes that a little difficult, so she'll have to wait a few more minutes. He seems quite content with where they are now, anyway._

_He adds another finger, pressing harder into her wet core and causing her to cover her mouth so her moan doesn't escape too loudly. "God, Robin," she pants, his fingers now up to his knuckles inside of her, "I want you."_

_His fingers falter for a second, looking down at her. She's made it clear already that she wants to take things slow, which he had agreed with, so she's not quite sure why those words popped out of her mouth. Well, actually, his thick fingers about to bring her to the brink of orgasm are what did it, she knows._

" _Regina?" he asks tentatively, always the gentleman._

" _No," she breaths, "I know. I just meant… god, not now, but… someday. Soon. I'm just… scared." She grinds her hips to get his fingers moving again. She knows she instantly killed the mood, but she was so close to coming, she just needs to get back to where they were._

" _Of what, love?" he leans down, brushing his lips against her forehead and sliding his fingers out of her to caress her hip._

_Sighing, she tells him, "I've only ever been with Daniel. Well, and Graham but that was just once. What if I'm not any good? Or good enough?"_

_Chuckling, he stares down at her, almost in disbelief, "You are able to make me come in the palm of your hand, I'm pretty sure you'll be good enough for me, darling." He kisses her lips, giving her hip a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry. When it happens, it'll happen. We can wait as long as you need. And trust me… it will be amazing."_

_Sighing out a small giggle, she covers her eyes with her free hand. "You're right," she groans, "I don't know why I'm so nervous."_

" _It's only natural." He says, kissing her neck and running his hand down to her thigh, "I had the same worry when I slept with Ashley the first time." Ashley is the first girl he dated after Marian's death, their relationship only lasted about six months, but he had told Regina one night that she was the first person he slept with after Marian, and it had taken him over three months into their relationship to let it get that far._

" _You did?"_

" _Of course." He tells her it makes sense to be nervous. "Now," he says, sliding down to press a kiss to her inner thigh, "can I continue?"_

_Smirking, she parts her legs a little further, moaning out a "What do you think?" before he swipes his tongue through her slick folds. He adds a finger into the mix as she pants and rocks against his face. God, she really needs to help relieve some of the pressure in his pants, but this just feels too damn good to give up right now._

_Raising one hand to play with her nipples, her other hand lands in his hair. Her fingers tangle into his locks as she pants his name, burying his face deeper into her core. It's with a hard flick of his tongue that she comes apart, running her nails along his shoulder blade and panting his name._

At least they weren't totally celibate. They've done any and all things besides actually have sex, but Regina thinks the time might be coming soon that she just gives in and lets him take her completely. She needs it.  _Badly_.

"This is an unexpected surprise," she says, smiling as they pull away from their kiss, "but I'm not complaining!"

They sit down at a booth, just a few down from the one they shared during their first meal together when the boys were sick.

"This is much better than my leftover fish and veggies."

"I agree," Robin smirks, grabbing her hand from across the table and interlocking their fingers. "And now we can get some of those barbeque burgers again." Robin had raved on and on about those burgers ever since they'd first eaten them, not that she can blame him. They're delicious.

Lunch comes and goes with them talking about work, plans for the summer now that summer break officially starts for the boys tomorrow, and his upcoming meetings. She even lets him run through one of his pitches with her, while she tells him the clients would be crazy not to buy the product after a sell like that.

As they're standing from the booth, Regina bends down to pick up her purse from the seat. When she stands back up, she almost bumps into someone. Looking up, about to apologize to the stranger, she sighs.

"Hi, Daniel," she says, adjusting her purse on her shoulder.

"Regina." Daniel looks over toward Robin, letting out a terse, "Robin."

"What are you doing on this side of town?" Regina asks, knowing Daniel's whole life is centered on the other side of the city.

"I had a business luncheon with some clients and they wanted to eat here. Seems we weren't the only ones with the idea."

"Well, they do have the best food here, so…" Regina replies awkwardly, as Robin comes to stand next to her, his hand on her lower back.

Daniel's eyes follow his hand briefly before his eyes shoot back up to Regina's face.

"Yes, well… have a good day," he says, leaning in to kiss Regina's cheek.

"You too, Daniel," Regina says, giving him a tight smile but slightly rolling her eyes once his back is turned.

The whole interaction was stiff and left Regina feeling uncomfortable. She and Daniel have always gotten along, even during their other break ups. This was just… not right. She makes a mental note to talk to Daniel soon about how he's feeling. Maybe he doesn't want Robin around Henry, maybe he's jealous… she just needs to find out. It's been eight, almost nine, months since they broke up, she'd think he would understand by now that she's not taking him back.

{*************************}

After lunch, Robin drops her off at her car with a kiss to her lips and a tight hug. He tells her not to worry about Daniel. He just needs time to adjust to her dating someone new. She agrees and says she still wants to talk with him about it, though.

"I understand, love." Robin runs his hands up and down her arms comfortingly. "And you will. It doesn't have to be today. You go finish your work day and worry about Daniel later."

Kissing him one more time, Regina nods, saying, "I will. Thank you again for lunch."

The rest of the work day goes by uneventfully, so Regina is relieved when the clock finally reads four o'clock and she knows she can leave work for the day. Henry will be getting off the bus soon, it was his last day of school so he's bound to be a ball of energy, and she always likes the days she can be home by time he gets there. That way he won't have to stay with their neighbor, Anna, and her boyfriend Kris. They're a great couple, both working from home, and have lived next door to them for years. They have always let Henry stay with them for the half hour to hour she sometimes needs to get home to him from work. He's technically old enough now that he could stay home for that little bit of time by himself, playing video games or working on his homework, but he admitted to Regina a few months ago that he missed Anna and Kris the few times he stayed home by himself. So, she'd given Henry a key and said it was up to him where he went after school - Anna's or their apartment - but either way, he needed to let both her and Anna know what he was going to do. He is still a child, after all.

An hour later, Regina is preparing spaghetti and talking with Henry about school when the doorbell rings.

Looking curiously at his mom, Henry asks, "Are Robin and Roland coming over?"

"Not that I know of, sweetheart." Regina wipes her hands on her apron and turns the stove top down to low, saying, "They're supposed to be coming over tomorrow for dinner. Maybe Robin just got his days mixed up." Smiling to herself and fixing her hair, fully expecting to see Robin, Regina opens the door.

"Daniel?"

"Dad?"

"Hey, Champ!" Daniel exclaims, walking into Regina's apartment.

"What are you doing here, Daniel?" Regina asks, trying to keep her voice even, but not missing the fact that he's brought her favorite flowers over with him and he's just walked into her apartment uninvited.

"Well I figured it'd been a while since we all ate together. And I knew you'd be cooking his annual last day of school spaghetti, so I thought 'why not?'," he says, handing the brightly colored sunflowers over to Regina.

Trying to hide her frustration in front of Henry, Regina just puts on a smile, turning to place the flowers down on the kitchen counter before turning back to face Daniel and Henry.

"Good thing we weren't at Robin's tonight!" Henry exclaims as Daniel's body stiffens.

"Yeah. Good thing," he says curtly, looking in Regina's direction.

Huffing out a breath, Regina tells him that he's welcome to stay for dinner, but then he needs to leave so Henry can get in bed. Technically, yes, she'd already told Henry earlier that they could stay up late and watch a movie while gorging on all the popcorn they could handle, but Daniel doesn't need to know that. She does not want to give him any more reason to stay longer. Luckily Henry is too distracted by his new comic book Daniel has just gifted him with to notice the lie she let slip.

"Aw, come on, Gina. Today was his last day of school. I think he can manage to stay up a little later with his old man!" Daniel says, ruffling Henry's hair and air punching him in the stomach.

"Yes, well," Regina says, turning to cut off the stove, "he's still a boy that needs sleep and you weren't exactly invited." She finishes her sentence tightly, hoping Henry won't notice how much she doesn't want his father there. It's not that she doesn't  _mind_  Daniel's company, he is, after all, Henry's father, but with the way he has been acting lately, she doesn't necessarily want him here. And showing up uninvited is just rude, no matter who you are.

Walking over to retrieve plates, while Henry and Daniel go into the living room, Regina runs a hand over her face. This should be interesting.

Dinner finishes after far too many awkward silences and Daniel asking one too many questions to Henry about Robin.

"Henry, why don't you go play in your room, son?" Daniel says, turning toward Henry, "I've got some things to talk to your mom about."

The way he says it makes Regina uncomfortable, but Daniel has never been one to raise a hand at her or harm her in any way, so she pushes the odd feeling down.

Once Henry has cleared the room and is in his bedroom, distracted, Daniel turns to Regina with a crazy look in his eye. He's standing in the living room, but quickly stalks toward her where she stands near the kitchen counters.

"Daniel?" Regina shakes her head, suddenly not feeling as safe as she did a few seconds ago, "What are you doing?"

"Shhh," he says, pushing his weight onto hers so she slams into the counter, his lips crashing onto hers. His hands fly up, one on her hip and the other on the side of her neck, effectively holding her in one spot so she can't move.

She tries to push him off of her, but Daniel is much stronger than she remembers. Pulling her head back a little, breaking their kiss, she angrily says, "What the hell are you doing?"

"Taking what's mine," Daniel growls back. He slams his mouth back onto hers, teeth crashing against hers. A vomiting sensation rises in her throat as she realizes what Daniel really wanted in coming here tonight. Her hands are free, so finding her strength, she starts pushing him off of her and hitting his chest.

"No!" Daniel screams, pinning her hands above her head, one of her wrist slamming into her cabinet handle, causing Regina to let out a strangled groan of pain. "You are mine.  _Not_  his," he says in between kisses. His one hand is big enough to hold both her wrists down against the cabinet, while his other hand slides down her side and back up to cup one of her breasts, squeezing and rubbing his thumb against her nipple through the fabric of her shirt.

She won't take this. She's a strong woman who will not tolerate this behavior from  _any_  man, let alone the man who claims to love her unconditionally and fathers her child. Her hands may be pinned down, but her legs aren't. They're stuck in between Daniel's legs, but she maneuvers one enough to pull it back and knee him in the groin before slamming her foot down on top of his.

Daniel lets out a howl of pain, stepping back for a second to regain his balance. Regina makes to move out from under him while he's distracted, but he grabs her torso and pushes her back to where she was. Once again stuck between him and the cabinets with both hands trapped above her head. He tightens his legs this time, assuring that she isn't able to pull the same stunt on him a second time. Fuck.

Regina can't help the tears that spring to her eyes. She needs to get out of this. She needs Henry to walk in, but she also doesn't want her baby to see her in this situation.

"Daniel," she chokes out through gritted teeth, "stop."

She's pissed, and scared, and wishing she had the ability to conjure a fireball in the palm of her hand like the characters in Henry's fairy tales. She'd incinerate him on the spot if she had the powers to do so.

Luckily, Daniel's latest outburst was enough to rouse Henry from his bedroom.

"Mom?" Henry questions, running toward the kitchen. Daniel instantly lets go of her when he hears Henry's voice.

"Hey, Champ!" He calls, turning to walk toward him. Regina wipes the tears from her cheeks quickly, hoping Henry won't notice them.

"Get away from him," Regina grits out angrily, straightening her shirt and tucking her hair behind her ears. "And get out. Now," she finishes in an eerily calm and steady voice. She moves to wrap her arms around Henry before Daniel can get close to him, but her arms are still shaking.

"Mom, what's going on?" Henry questions, fear evident in his voice.

"Nothing, sweetheart. Your father was just leaving."

With one last snarl, Daniel leaves, saying he'll be back in a few weeks to take Henry on their annual fishing trip when their son gets back from his summer camp.  _Yeah, right_ , Regina thinks to herself. She isn't planning on letting Daniel get anywhere near her son anytime soon. His summer camp starts tomorrow and will last three weeks. Even after that, she probably won't let Daniel see him.

As he slams the door shut, Regina is still shaking. She turns to put both hands on Henry's shoulders. "Go pack a bag, honey. We're going to go stay at Robin's tonight.''

"Ok…" Henry's brow furrows, much like Regina's do when perplexed, as he walks away to get his things. She eventually needs to find out what Henry saw but doesn't want to scare him right now if he didn't see anything.

Pulling out her phone from her back pocket, she takes a deep, calming breath and sends Robin a quick text just to make sure (even though she knows what his answer will be).

_Can Henry and I sleep at your place tonight?_

She instantly gets a reply of _, Of course. What's up?_

Not wanting to get into it through a text, Regina quickly packs a few things into an overnight bag, while trying to pacify her anger, and they head to Robin's.

At least there, in the comfort of his embrace, she knows she'll be safe.

{*********************}

_Eeeek… Thoughts?_

{*********************}

**Trigger Warning:**  Sexual Assault


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the reviews, favorites and follows… you guys encourage me to keep writing this little story of mine, haha  
> Thanks to Brooke and Shay for, once again, checking over this and putting up with me through every rewrite of certain scenes lol!  
> This is another beast of a chapter, so settle in and get comfy ;)  
> Please leave a review and let me know what all you liked!  
> {********************}

 

**Chapter Eight**

It’s after nine-thirty when his phone goes off. He’s pleasantly surprised to see that it’s a text from Regina. He hasn’t heard from her since she was leaving work but figures she was busy with Henry considering today was the last day of school.

_ Can Henry and I stay at your place tonight? _

Well that’s an odd request, seeing as she’s only spent the night a few times. And usually only because the four of them have fallen asleep in the living room watching a movie and ended up sleeping there all night, the two of them wrapped in each other’s arms. There have been a few cases, however, where Henry has slept in the guest room, and Regina has crawled into Robin’s bed, doing delicious things to his body, and him to hers, before curling into his side. Those nights were his favorite.

_ Of course. What’s up? _

When he gets no reply back from her, he begins to worry. After about thirty minutes of nothing from her, he sends another text.

_ Everything alright? Now you’ve got me worried. _

As soon as he hits send, she’s there, knocking on his door.

Opening up the door, his breath is lost to him. She looks so small and scared, hair thrown in a messy bun, makeup a little bit smeared around her eyes, and not making eye contact with him. Henry, however, is looking right at him. His headphones hang from around his neck, while his iPad is clutched tightly under his arm, overnight bag in the other hand. His gaze seems a bit bleary, like he’s ready to crawl in to bed at any minute, but he also looks confused, out of sorts, as it were. 

“Hey, Henry, why don’t you take your stuff into the guest bedroom. You remember where it is?” He asks, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. He has the overwhelming need to wrap his arms around both of them, despite not even knowing what has happened. Can tell by the looks of the pair of them that is wasn’t anything good.

“Yeah,” Henry replies, a little solemnly, Robin notes. “Thanks.” With that the young boy walks off, leaving Robin and Regina alone in his entryway.

“Regina?” Robin asks anxiously, noticing the tears that have welled up in her eyes, but haven’t fallen. “What’s happened?”

With that simple question, Regina begins to cry. She covers her mouth with her free hand, assumedly so Henry doesn’t hear her. Robin goes to take her hand down and lead her into the living room, but she pulls her hand away, wincing and rubbing her wrist.

That’s when Robin sees it. Sees the red marks on her wrist.

“Regina. Please talk to me, love,” he says gently, pointing toward the living room and easing her bag from her other hand. “Let’s go have a sit in there and we can talk, yeah?”

Looking into his eyes for the first time since he opened the door, she nods once and starts walking toward his couch.

Sitting next to her, he gives Regina a few minutes to gather her thoughts.

After several moments of her staring at the same spot on his coffee table in silence, eyes fixated on the half empty beer bottle he’d pulled out earlier, and him staring at her wrist she’s been rubbing, she finally speaks.

She sniffles before saying, “Daniel came over tonight.” Her bleary chocolate eyes turn to finally look at his. He can tell she’s trying not to cry again.

“What happened?” Anger welling up inside of him at the thought of Daniel hurting her.

“I didn’t invite him. He just showed up.” She goes on to recount the whole incident to him, tears filling her eyes once again. Tells him how Daniel brought flowers over and was trying to be charming, but then got angry when Robin’s name was mentioned. She tells him how he slammed her into the counter and started kissing her.

“I tried to push him off of me and get away,” she continues, a few tears slide down her cheek despite her now calm voice, “but he wouldn’t let me go. He grabbed my wrists and held them in place above my head.”

She tells him how Daniel was kissing her all over and rubbing his hand on her breasts. Says she kneed him in the groin, tried to get free of his grasp, but that just made him hold her down even harder.

Robin is beyond livid at this point. How dare a man treat a woman like this. No one deserves to be treated like that, especially Regina.

“I asked him what he was doing, and he said... taking what was his,” she says through gritted teeth, clearly trying to reign in her tears. She leans forward, picking up his beer from the table and fiddling with the label a moment before taking a deep swig. She then offers the bottle over to him, and he takes it from her outstretched hand, taking a pull of his own as she says, “He said I was  _ his _ and not yours.”

Well, that… just isn’t right. She doesn’t  _ belong _ to anyone. She’s a human, not a toy. Sodding prick.

She goes on, finishing by telling him that her only saving grace in all of this was Henry. “He came out after hearing Daniel yell,” she says, a tremble to her voice, adding that he jumped away and tried to act innocent in front of their son. She kicked him out after that but knows he only left because Henry was there to witness it all. Another tear rolls down her cheek, catching on the scar above her lip before she brushes it away with the tip of her finger. 

Robin can’t take it anymore, he needs to comfort her. He can’t sit by and let her cry like this. He places the bottle down again and hesitantly leans toward her, whispering, “Come here, love.”

She falls into his chest, a muffled sob escaping from her lips as she apologizes. “What on Earth are you apologizing for?” He’s fighting back his own angry tears now, never wanting her to feel like she has to apologize for showing bloody emotion. “You’ve done nothing wrong!”

She tells him she’s sorry for showing up like this without explanation, she just couldn’t stay in her apartment tonight with Daniel acting the way he was, wasn’t sure if he’d come back or not. And well, that just won’t do. He won’t have her feeling guilty over that.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. You are always welcome here.” He tells her, rubbing comforting circles in between her shoulder blades and taking a calming breath for himself.

They sit there for a few moments, both seeming to slow their heart rates. They finish off the last bit of his beer in silence, passing it back and forth while he listens to her breathing slow down. The apartment is quiet, both boys already asleep (he hopes Henry is anyway, hasn’t heard from him since he went back to the guest room when they got here), and the only noise that can be heard is the humming of the dishwasher he’d turned on after dinner.

Regina takes a deep breath and leans into his side. Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he kisses the top of her head, breathing in the scent of her coconut scented shampoo.

“Where do you want to sleep tonight?” He doesn’t want to assume she’s going to sleep in his bed. She’s upset, and scared, and she might not want to be near him all night. And that would be okay by him. He just wants her to feel safe, no matter where she sleeps.

She turns her head from where it’s been resting in the crook of his shoulder and looks into his eyes. “I think I’m going to climb in bed with Henry and make sure he’s okay.”

“Sounds good,” he murmurs softly, untangling his arm from around her and standing up. He stretches his hand out toward her, and she smiles softly, placing her hand into his so he can help her up from the couch.

He walks her back to his guest bathroom, fingers interlocked on the way there. She says she needs a moment to pull herself together and clean up before getting into bed. 

“I at least need to brush my teeth,” she says with a ghost of a smile, claiming she can’t kiss her son goodnight with alcohol on her breath. 

He smirks despite himself, can’t help but linger on the fact that she’d even think of such formalities at a time like this.

“Alright, love. Goodnight.” He places a kiss to her forehead, saying he’ll be in his room if she needs anything.

She nods in response, leaning up to kiss his cheek and whisper a  _ goodnight _ to him.

Stroking his fingers through her hair, he leaves her be, heading toward his room to ready himself for bed.

{*****************************}

Carefully pulling back the covers and slipping in beside Henry, she settles onto the pillow next to him. He’s become a heavy sleeper over the past few years, thankfully, so she doesn’t have to limit her movements too much like she would have when he was a toddler.

Rolling onto her side to look at him, she lightly brushes his messy brown hair to the side. His eyes peek open groggily and her hand stills, moving it to rest by her side again.

“Love you, Mom,” he mumbles into the darkness of the room, their faces illuminated only by the sliver of moonlight shining through from behind the window’s curtain.

He reaches over and places his hand atop of hers that rests between their bodies, giving it a gentle pat.

Sighing into a smile, she vows, “I love you too, Henry. So much.”

She leans over, kissing him on the forehead. Henry’s lips curve into a sleepy smile as his eyes slide shut again. His mouth falls open and he’s once again asleep.

Jealous. Regina wishes she could fall asleep that easily but knows sleep with most likely evade her tonight.

She was right.

An hour later, Regina still can’t sleep. She can’t stop thinking about the way Daniel pinned her hands down and made her feel so unsafe, so vulnerable, in her own home. Daniel has never acted like that – not once in twelve years did she ever see any abusive tendencies like that. Granted, she never did anything to make him jealous that she can remember, either, so she never would’ve had a reason to see that side of him. It’s amazing how, even after all that time, people can still surprise you. Shaking her head, she gets up from the bed and tucks the covers around Henry, placing a kiss to his forehead. Closing the door gently, she makes her way across the hall to Robin’s room. 

She knocks lightly, then cracks his door open.

He’s sitting up in bed with the bedside table’s light still on, reading.

“Can I come in?” she sheepishly asks.

Closing his book and looking up at her, he says, “Of course, darling. Come on.” He pats the spot on the bed next to him, shifting his body slightly. 

Climbing in, Regina settles her head on top of his chest, breathing in his comforting scent. He always smells slightly of laundry detergent, Spring Rain to be exact, and pine mixed together. It’s an odd combination, but somehow he pulls it off. It’s his own unique scent, and Regina finds it beyond comforting, especially in this moment.

“Thank you for letting us stay here tonight.” She’s tracing small circles against his chest, his heartbeat in her ear soothing her.

“You’re welcome, love. Stay as long as you need to.”

Smiling and letting out a gentle sigh, Regina looks up at Robin, saying, “Is it ok if I sleep in here? I feel… safe… with you.”

And she does. Being in his arms right now is the most reassuring feeling Regina could ask for. He’s not pressuring her to do anything, to make any decisions. He’s not asking too many questions. He’s just being there for her. Comforting her. This is exactly what she needs.

Smiling down at her, he says, “You know you are always welcome to sleep right next to me. If that’s what you need tonight, or any night, to feel safe, then I’m more than willing to be your pillow.”

She chuckles at that. He has the ability to do that. He makes her smile when she’s had a bad day and makes her laugh when all she wants to do is cry. She can be her true self around him, let her walls down and just be free. It’s one of the things she loves about him. 

_ Loves? _

Well… that… maybe, maybe she does. 

Thoughts of loving Robin stick in her mind like a piece of caramel on the roof of her mouth. Images of him racing the boys on the swings at the park, and movie nights on the couch, cuddling into his warmth while the boys sleep on a pallet on the floor, the late night phone calls, and the feel of his body on top of hers swim around in her head. She lays there in complete silence, mulling over what and how she truly feels and continues to trace patterns along Robin’s chest.

This probably isn’t what she should be thinking about right now, should probably be thinking about Daniel and what she’s going to do, but thinking of Robin is so much more calming in this moment. 

After a few beats of silence, her thoughts tossing between Robin, and Daniel, and even Henry, she speaks.

“Henry asked me to leave Daniel months before I actually did, you know?”

She can feel Robin’s hum in his chest while his thumb rubs slow, calming lines up and down her bicep. “I didn’t know that. What made him ask you to do that?”

“It wasn’t anything like tonight, if that’s what you’re wondering.” She sits up a little, using his chest to push herself up and looks into his eyes. “He’s never done anything like this before. I think Henry could just tell I wasn’t happy, and he was old enough to voice his opinion for once,” she says, rubbing her hand on his chest, picking at invisible lint on his t-shirt as she speaks. “I guess he’s even more observant than I thought.”

“That he is.” Robin takes her hand in his. “He’s a very smart boy.”

Smiling wistfully at him, she agrees, saying he is definitely smarter that she gives him credit for sometimes. “I just wish I’d had the guts to listen to him sooner and end things for good. Wish I’d been braver.” She whispers that last part into the stillness of the room and lays back down, settling a bit further under the covers this time. She looks up at him before placing a kiss on his chest and saying, “I wish you’d come into my life sooner, too.”

He looks down into her eyes and smiles, saying, “Well, maybe sometimes it’s all about timing.” Dropping a kiss to the top of her head, he inhales the scent of her hair and sighs, leaning his head back against the headboard and rubbing his fingers up and down her spine. 

Stretching her head up to be closer to his, she agrees, murmurs a  _ maybe it is _ and places a soft kiss to his lips. “Thank you, Robin. For everything.” 

He kisses her back and says, “You’re welcome. Now, it’s late, and I know two young boys that will be up with the sun. What do you say we get some sleep, hmm?”

She snuggles into his chest and pulls the sheet up to her shoulders saying, “Sounds perfect.”

With that, Robin reaches over to turn the lamp off, cascading the room into darkness. With their whispered  _ goodnight _ s to each other, she finally drifts off into a restful sleep.

{*****************************}

Looking down at her sleeping form the next morning, Robin can’t get over how beautiful she is, even snuggled down into his comforter, hair a little messy from a deep sleep, and her mouth hanging ajar. Last night had been an emotional one for her and in turn, him. He couldn’t understand how any man could treat a woman like that. Staring down at his girlfriend, Robin feels a surge of anger go through him. Daniel better pray Robin never sees him or he’s not sure what he will do.

Feeling Regina stir, Robin slides down deeper into the mattress to wrap his arms around her.

“Good morning, love,” he says softly, placing a kiss her to the top of her head.

Regina sighs, “Morning,” while stretching her arms above her head and curling herself into Robin’s chest.

Smiling at how adorable she is groggy and a little sleep drunk, he wraps his arms tighter around her before asking, “What would you like to do today?”

“Mmm, I would love to stay in bed all day and watch a movie or… _ something _ ... with you.” She grins coyly, gently rubbing her hand along his forearm. “But unfortunately, we both have to work today. And I have to take Henry to summer camp later.”

He  _ ahhs _ at that, bumping his nose to hers, “That’s right.” He says he really doesn’t want to work, would rather spend the first day of Roland’s summer break out in the sunshine, at the park, perhaps. It’s Saturday, after all, but duty calls. 

Robin’s  _ Sleep Tight _ campaign is almost finished, so his whole team is coming in today to work on it for a few hours. They’re hoping to be completely done with the project ahead of schedule. Regina and her farmhouse team are having to go antique shopping today to get some decorative items for her clients. The local antique stores always have the best sales on Saturdays, so her team agreed they’d all go today. Hopefully the items they find will placate Mr. and Mrs. King. They’ve been basically insufferable up to this point, especially Mrs. King, so hopefully these affordable, but timeless, antique finds will make her somewhat happy.

She giggles at his dramatic resistance to doing his job, saying no one ever wants to work on the weekend. Adding an  _ it should be illegal _ before she says, “And the boys will be up soon, anyway, so I guess we can’t stay here all day.”

Pressing a lingering kiss to her lips, her slight moan in the back of her throat keeping him there just a bit longer, he finally pulls back and agrees. “You’re right, darling. We can watch that…  _ movie _ … some other time.” He grins smugly. “How about I make you lot some breakfast then?”

“That would be lovely.” She smiles contently, looking down at his tattoo, her eyebrows slightly furrowing. “I’ve been wondering… what’s the story behind this?”

Placing a kiss atop her head, he takes a deep breath. “Ah, well,” he laughs, “that would be a drunken mistake at nineteen.” He tells her Neal had dared him to get a tattoo one night after losing a bet they had going on a football game. He chose a black crest with a lion inside because it reminded him of his grandfather. “My grandad had a lion tattooed on his arm, never quite knew why, though.” She chuckles at that. “But at the time, as drunk as I was, a lion seemed like a good homage to pay to the old man. At least it wasn’t a naked girl or something horribly embarrassing like that.”

Laughing, she sits up, still holding his arm in her lap. She traces the outer rim of the crest, saying, “You’re right about that. It’s not bad, I like it. We’ve all been there, though, haven’t we? Drunken nights getting tattoos?”

His head tilts, eyebrows shooting up as he questions if  _ she _ has any drunken mistakes inked into her skin that he has somehow missed in all the times he’s seen different parts of her glorious body.

She giggles, saying  _ she _ doesn’t, but she’d gone with Emma to get both of her tattoos. “She was drunk for the first one, a butterfly on her ankle. You know, typical drunk teenage cliché.” He laughs, rubbing his thumb along her arm. She tells him she also went with Emma to get her flower tattooed on her wrist, but they were  _ completely sober for that one _ .

Regina lays back down, cuddling into his side, still tracing the outline of his tattoo for a few minutes. After a while, Robin’s stomach lets out a low rumble and she giggles, saying, “I guess we should get up and make breakfast now.”

Agreeing they should make pancakes and eggs to celebrate the start of the boys’ summer vacation, they stand from the bed. Robin can’t help but smile at the sight of her. Her hair is slightly mussed from sleeping, and she’s wearing a t-shirt and leggings that she brought from home. She looks so much smaller than normal but no less gorgeous. He thinks he could look at her every day and never tire of it. He’s come to realize over the past two months that he’s more than besotted with this woman, he has already completely fallen for her. He’s in love with her, every part of her. The way she loves Henry and Roland, how she laughs at his corny jokes, the way she lets her walls down around him, her passion, her commitment to all things she does, everything. Now he just needs to find the right time to tell her how he feels.

{***************************}

Walking into the kitchen, Regina immediately goes to the refrigerator to pull out the boxed pancake mix before Robin stops her mid reach.

“Ah, ah, ah, milady,” he says, taking the mix from her hands and shutting the refrigerator’s stainless steel door. “I believe I said  _ I _ would make breakfast.”

He’s smirking at her, and she can’t help but look at him with amused, narrowed eyes. “Yes, I suppose you did. Thank you.”

“Not a problem, you sit back and relax and let me pamper you… at least until the boys come bounding through those doors,” he finishes, pointing his wooden spoon in the direction of the bedrooms.

After a few minutes of Robin cooking, and Regina warming her hand around a large cup of coffee, the sound of bedroom doors opening and little foot patters on the wooden floor can be heard.

“Gina!” Roland exclaims, hopping up into Regina’s lap as she sits at the kitchen table.

“Good morning, baby! Did you sleep well?” She asks, brushing his unruly curls to one side.

“I sure did! And it’s summer break!”

Laughing, Regina tells him she knows and asks what he wants to do on his break. Before he can answer, Henry comes in, dragging his feet and rubbing his eyes. He definitely doesn’t have the energy of a five year old up at eight a.m. anymore.

Setting Roland down on his feet and pulling Henry into her side, she says, “Morning, sweetheart. Did you sleep okay?”

Shrugging, Henry says, “Yeah. I slept fine, but I’m still tired.”

Looking guiltily at him, she smooths his hair down and pulls him into her lap. He may be ten, almost eleven, but he’s still her baby and she feels the need to comfort him as much as possible. She knows he didn’t go to bed  _ too _ late, no later than he has plenty of times on the weekends, but she assumes he didn’t sleep as well as normal from being in a different bed and seeing what he did last night.

Regina looks up and sees Robin giving her a sympathetic, knowing look. Softly smiling at him, she changes the subject.

“What do my boys want to drink with their pancakes this morning, hmm?” She questions, nuzzling her nose into Henry’s hair.

Henry says he wants milk and adds an all too innocent  _ with a little chocolate in it? _ to the end of his sentence. Sighing with a smile on her face, she agrees he can have chocolate milk this morning to celebrate summer break.

Looking over to the next boy, she questions Roland as to what he wants. Roland jumps up and down excitedly, claiming he wants chocolate milk, too,  _ just like Henry! _

Robin lets out a laugh then, agreeing to let Roland had the chocolately treat with his breakfast.

“What about my other boy?” Regina teases, looking over the Robin, “What do you want to drink this morning?”

Plating the newest stack of pancakes onto the plate, Robin turns to look at her with mirth in his eyes and his jaw hanging slightly open in mock aghast. The two younger boys are chortling together, pointing at Robin and teasing him, saying  _ you’re a boy, too!  _ Chuckling and shaking his head, he says he’s going to have some orange juice.

“Sounds delicious,” she tells him, gently removing Henry from her lap as she stands. “I’ll fix those chocolate milks first for these two.”

Walking over to the refrigerator, Regina drops a kiss to Robin’s cheek on her way, saying she’ll pour their juice after the chocolate milks are made. 

“I’ll get them, love,” he tells her as she opens the refrigerator door. “You just worry about the boys.” 

Pulling out the dark syrup from the door, she hums her acknowledgment and makes the slightly chocolate filled drinks. It’s the first day of summer break, after all, they can splurge a little bit, but not  _ too _ much. She knows how hyper Henry can get after having too much sugar, especially first thing in the morning, so she can only imagine how active Roland would be if he had too much chocolate.

After stirring the boys’ milks, which Roland had attentively watched her do with wide set eyes, claiming it was like magic watching it go from white to brown, Regina goes to place their drinks on the table and sit back down. Robin  _ did _ say he wanted to pamper her this morning, and who is she to refuse such an offer? She’ll let him finish cooking while she just enjoys being with the their sons.

While Henry goes to help Robin cook the pancakes, Roland comes to sit in Regina’s recently vacated lap, pouting the biggest pout she’s ever seen. “I don’t want Henry to go away,” he tells her, looking up at her with his puppy dog eyes. Henry will be leaving later today for his camp, so Roland only has this morning to play with him.

Kissing the top of his head, she whispers, “Me neither,” into his ear.

Henry sets his spatula down on the counter and walks over the Roland, giving him a pat to his shoulder and assuring him that he’ll be back before he knows it and that they can  _ play pirates as soon as I’m home _ , which causes both parents to smile. She’s so thankful, once again, that her and her boyfriend’s son get along. Dating someone with kids can be messy, and this situation could have been a lot worse, but she knows she lucked out in the man-with-a-kid department.

“What are you going to do at camp, Henry?” Robin questions, bringing the syrup and butter over to the table. Their plates are already in front of them, so Regina picks up a knife and starts buttering and cutting Roland’s pancakes for him.

Henry tells the group that he’s been looking forward to this camp for months now. It’s a Young Authors camp that he won a trip to. Each year his school system does a “Young Authors Competition” where students can enter a writing of their choice, as long as an adult did not help them in any way with the writing. Each school’s winner gets invited to go to the Young Authors camp where they spend part of their days in writing classes catered to their creative minds. Along with getting to brush up on his writing skills, he will also get to enjoy classes of his choosing like swimming, as well as other sporting activities like horseback riding (which he says he’s the most excited about, causing Regina to smile).

“You’re gonna ride horsies!?” Roland exclaims with a mouthful of pancake.

Robin gives him a gentle warning of  _ remember, we don’t talk with our mouths full _ before telling Henry that his camp sounds awesome and he can’t wait to hear all about it.

“What will you guys do while I’m gone?” Henry asks, looking at the other three people at the table.

Roland chimes in saying, “I want to go feed the ducks!”

Chuckling, Regina says, “That sounds like a reasonable request,” turning her eyes to Robin for confirmation. Roland loves feeding the ducks down by the pond, so she figures they’ll be doing that at some point over the next few weeks while Henry is away.

Robin  _ mhmm _ s and tells Roland they can go to the pond one day soon.

“Not at the pond, Papa!” Roland furrows his eyebrows, as if the pond is the most unreasonable response he’s ever heard.

“Well, then,” Regina laughs, “where are we feeding these ducks, Ro?”

Looking at the adults as if they’ve lost their minds, Roland tells them, like they’re idiots for it needing to be explained to them, “The ducks on the moon, Gina!” bursting into a fit of giggles.

Regina looks over to Robin with an arched eyebrow who simply shrugs his shoulders and rolls his eyes, chuckling at his son’s silliness. Shaking her head, she looks over to Henry to see he’s trying to cover his laughter with his hand.

Reaching over to where he sits to tickle his sides, she asks him what’s so funny, to which he responds with a chortled, “Nothing, Mom! Stop!”

Roland looks over and says he wants to be tickled too, so Regina switches from one boy to another, reaching over to his seat and tickling Roland’s ribs with just as much fervor while Henry dives back in to his breakfast once he’s caught his breath. In Roland’s attempts to get away from the tickling that he’d asked for, he laughs and grabs Regina’s wrist with a  _ Stop, Gina! That tickles! _ that sends a burst of pain through Regina’s hurt wrist. It hadn’t bruised yet, it’s just sore to touch, so she’s hoping it won’t turn black and blue, after all. She pulls back her hand suddenly, bringing her other hand to rub it. Looking around the table, she notes that Henry seems to be too occupied with his pancakes to notice her pain, and Roland is obliviously still laughing at his tickled ribs. But Robin is looking at her dead on. She shakes her head to let him know that she’s fine before he can say anything to Roland and alert Henry to her discomfort.

Picking up her orange juice, she takes a sip before saying, “These pancakes are really good, boys. You did a great job!” Henry perks up, saying a  _ thanks mom _ after swallowing his bite, while Robin continues to look at her wrist from across the table, giving her a small smile and a  _ mhmm _ , _ delicious _ when the two younger boys look to him for a response.

After breakfast, the boys put their plates in the sink and rush back to Roland’s room, claiming they need to play as much as possible before Henry leaves this evening.

Once Robin and Regina are alone, the air changes between them. Regina knows that he’s wanted to talk all morning about what happened with Daniel, especially once she hurt her wrist playing with Roland. She doesn’t exactly want to, but she knows they need to have this conversation.

“So,” Robin starts, turning off the sink where he’s been cleaning the dishes, and makes his way over to sit next to her at the kitchen table.

“Yeah,” she sighs, pulling her legs to sit criss cross in the chair. “I guess you want to talk about Daniel?”

Taking her hands in his, he looks into her eyes and tells her, “I do. But only if you’re comfortable with it. You’ve told me already what he did, but I’m wondering now what you’re going to do?”

Crinkling her forehead, she says, “What do you mean?”

“I just mean, love, are you going to call the police? Put a restraining order on him? Forbid him from seeing Henry? I’m not sure what the next step in this whole thing would be.”

Taking one hand out of his embrace to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear, Regina glances away from his intense stare before whispering, “I don’t know, Robin.”

She can feel the tears swelling up in her eyes, so she pushes those down and clears her throat. No sense in crying about it, she just needs to make a plan.

Placing her hand back in Robin’s, she looks at him again. She tells him she feels like she should talk to Daniel before she decides on anything. He’s never done anything like that before, so it seems a little rash to call the cops on him.

“Maybe I just won’t talk to him for a few weeks and see where things go once Henry comes back from camp,” she says, shrugging her shoulders. She can tell Robin doesn’t exactly agree with this plan, but she’s sure his plan would include beating the shit out of Daniel if it were up to him.

After a moment, he says, “Alright, darling, if that’s what you want to do.” He rubs his hands up and down her forearms. “Just know, if he tries anything again, though, you can point him in my direction. I’ll be happy to have more than a conversation with him.”

Smiling, Regina stands from the table and makes her way over to the sink, telling Robin she knows he would and she appreciates it, pecking a kiss to his cheek.

They agree that while Henry is away at camp, and even when he’s back, if she feels worried that Daniel will come back to her apartment and hurt her, she’s to get in her car and drive straight to Robin’s. Robin even suggests her leaving some clothes here in case she needs to get out in a pinch, but Regina assures him that won’t be necessary.

With them both feeling satisfied, for now, with this plan, they make their way into the kitchen to finish cleaning up breakfast and prepare themselves for work, much to Regina’s chagrin. She, just like Robin, would rather stay inside all day with the boys, soaking up every last minute she can with Henry before he leaves. 

Rinsing out the skillet he’d used to cook in, Robin looks over to where Regina stands next to him, drying a plate. With a cheeky grin on his face, he says, “Oh, by the way,” turning to look at her with raised eyebrows, “I heard a certain someone finally went on a date with Neal.”

At his wagging eyebrows, Regina rolls her eyes. “Yeah,” she chuckles. Emma had finally been convinced to go out with Neal last week. She’s not exactly sure what her friend’s reluctance had been. Neal is a nice guy, which was honestly, probably Emma’s hesitance. She’s always been into the bad boys, but Regina tried to get her to see that that hadn’t worked out so well for her in the past. “She said she had a great time, too.”

“I knew she would.”

Laughing at Robin’s smugness, setting them up  _ had _ been his idea after all, she swats him with the dish towel she’s been using.

“Oi!” He exclaims, taking the towel out of her hands and smacking it against her backside. “Just admit it, I was right. I knew they’d get along great.”

“Yeah, yeah,” she giggles, yanking the towel from his hand playfully and drying the last of the dishes. “She said he already asked her out on another date, too, so hopefully this goes somewhere.”

Turning to face Regina, he lets out an  _ atta boy _ and an overly dramatic fist bump into the air, causing her smile to grow. She rolls her eyes at his antics and turns toward the sink.

Wiping her hands on the dish towel, Regina sighs and says, “I should really be getting home. I’ll need to get ready to meet up with my team after I drop Henry off at Emma’s.”

Robin comes to stand behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and nuzzling his nose into the side of her neck, causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand up and a tingling sensation to run down her back.

“Alright,” he says, placing soft kisses to her neck and down to her shoulder.

“Robin,” she states, rolling her eyes but loving the feel of him wrapped around her. She starts rubbing her hands along his forearms before turning in his arms. “I really do have to go.” She sighs, smirking and looking into his blue eyes.

She places a few soft kisses to his lips before saying she needs to go get some work done, but she’s got some décor to bring by his office later.

At that, his face lights up, and he tells her he can’t wait.

After a few more stolen kisses by the kitchen sink, Regina reluctantly pulls away and goes to get Henry.

{******************************}

After a few hours of working with his team on their bubble bath campaign and a few texts sent to Regina, she finally arrives at his office.

He’s sitting at his new desk typing several emails to his team when Belle buzzes in to let him know Regina is here. By now, Belle knows she doesn’t have to call Regina  _ Ms. Mills _ . Robin told her weeks ago of their relationship and told her there was no need to be so formal.

When Regina walks in, his breath is knocked out of him, much like it always is when he sees her. He doesn’t think he’ll ever get over just how drop dead gorgeous she truly is.

Today she’s gone a little bit more casual since it’s a warm summer afternoon. She’s in dark denim pants with a heather gray t-shirt and a black vest. Her hair is clipped back into a low ponytail and he finds himself staring at her hair. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen it pulled back like that. He likes it. It’s cute.

She’s carrying a potted green plant in one hand and a box in the other. Rushing over to help her, he greets her with a peck to the lips.

“Afternoon, my love.”

Smiling, she greets him as well, handing Robin the box that he now sees contains candles and an assortment of books. Luckily, she carried the plant with her hurt hand; the heavy box surely would’ve injured it even more.

“I’m just dropping these off.” She nods her head in the direction of the box he’s currently carrying over to the conference table. “The books are for the other offices, so I need to take those in there. Mary Margaret is coming up with some other boxes, too. Most of it is for the smaller offices, but this plant is for in here.”

“Wow,” he says, looking shocked at all the new items being brought in. “I feel like I’m a thief, stealing all these goods from your design warehouse.”

She’s mentioned before that she has a small warehouse where she keeps different antiques and decorations she uses in her design spaces. Some items are for customers to keep, while others are just for show during the reveal and the client can choose to purchase them or not.

Laughing, she tells him simply, “Well you can’t steal something that’s been given to you.”

He  _ ahhs _ and tells her, “Well, I’ll take any and all décor you wish to gift me with then.”

He makes his way over to her as she finishes telling him where to put the plant and places a quick peck to her lips. He can’t help himself though, he needs to feel her again. Yes, she slept curled into his side all night and they’ve already shared several kisses since she walked into his office not even five minutes ago, but he has a feeling that he might just combust if he doesn’t kiss her again. 

With that thought, he takes her by the waist and pulls her to him.

She lets out a surprised gasp, but it quickly turns into a giggle as she places her hands on his biceps and gives them a little squeeze.

“Robin, what are you doing?” She laughs, rubbing the sides of his arms.

“Giving you a proper kiss,” he states, placing his lips over hers fully. Her lips are soft and full and he loves the way they feel on his. Alway matching up perfectly together. He’s lost in this moment, rubbing his hands down her back, giving her bum a light squeeze, then bringing his hands back up to pull her hair down, out of that ponytail, and nestle his hands in it.

Regina moans into his mouth, which he welcomes with a moan of his own. They haven’t had sex yet, which he’s fine with because he wants her to be totally comfortable, especially after what Daniel did, but he loves her and hearing her moan  _ does _ things to him.

Before he can pull away on his own terms, he’s pushed back slightly by Regina when they hear a light clearing of someone’s throat.

Looking over her shoulder, as Regina covers her face and buries it into Robin’s pec, he sees Belle and Mary Margaret standing there with matching grins and raised eyebrows.

“Ah, yes, Belle,” Robin says smugly, handing Regina her hair clip back, “Did you need something?”

Regina finally lifts her head from his chest, smoothing down her hair from their impromptu make out session, and pulling it back up quickly before turning to face the grin twins in the doorway.

“Uh, Mrs. Nolan just needed to know where to put the boxes,” Belle states, still grinning, and tilting her head in Mary Margaret’s direction.

“Oh! Yes,” he hears Regina say. He can’t help but smirk at how flustered she seems over being caught making out with her boyfriend. Belle and Mary Margaret (and everyone else they work with) already know they’re dating, but Regina is a private person, so he cuts her some slack. He’ll poke fun at her later for it. The smack to the arm he’s bound to receive will be well worth it, he thinks. “You can put them in the second office on the left.”

“Sure thing, boss,” Mary Margaret says, turning and snickering all the way out the door as Belle follows behind her.

“Oh my god,” Regina says, covering her face again as she turns to face Robin.

Sharing a laugh, Robin places a kiss to her forehead before tracing the curve of her nose with his.

“It’s alright, baby,” Robin assures her. She’s laughing along with him, but he can tell she’s still embarrassed if the flush of her cheeks is anything to go by.

She sighs out a  _ yeah, yeah  _ before adding an, “Oh, I almost forgot.” Regina walks over to the potted plant on his conference table and walks it over to the corner of his office that houses two black leather chairs. She places the plant holder on the glass table in between the chairs. “My mother called to remind me that she and I are having dinner tonight once I get back from taking Henry to camp. It completely slipped my mind.”

“Oh, that’s alright.” Slightly disappointed because they were supposed to have dinner, but he knows she hasn’t seen her mum in a few months, so he’ll give her up for a night.

“But I still want to try and come see you,” she says, smirking and slinking her body over to his. His eyes cast down to watch her hips sway over to him.

“God, you are so sexy,” he breathes, wrapping his arms around her once she makes it over to him.

Biting her lip, she tells him she’ll try to come over when she’s done if it’s not too late.

He assures her that it’s fine, says he’ll see her tomorrow because he knows she hasn’t seen her mum in a while and that she’ll more than likely be out with her until late into the evening. He kisses her lips again before she says, “I need to get home and finish packing Henry. He’s got to be there for check in by four o’clock.”

“Sounds good, love,” he says, rubbing his hand down her arm and interlocking their fingers. 

He walks them over to his office door, stopping just short of the hallway. “Text me when you’re headed back.”

Regina smiles, assuring him that she will, says she’ll text him after dinner as well.

She stands on her tiptoes to kiss him one more time before she leaves his office.

{******************************}

They arrive just in time for check in to the Young Authors Camp. Standing just outside the welcome desk area, Regina dries her tears from her cheeks. “I know it’s only three weeks, but I’m going to miss you.” It’s the longest she’s ever been away from her little boy, and while she knows three weeks isn’t technically  _ that _ long, it feels like a lifetime to her.

Henry sets down his duffle bag and places his hands on her shoulders. “I’m gonna miss you, too, Mom.”

Smiling at her little boy, who’s actions seem more of an understanding grown up than her ten year old, she places a kiss to his cheek. “You’re going to have a great time, though!”

They stand there for a beat in silence. She can tell something is on Henry’s mind. Emma mentioned when she picked him up that Henry had been unusually quiet all day, but the blonde assumed it had been nerves over going to camp. Something is definitely off with him, has been the whole ride out to camp. It was an hour long drive, so she’d tried to make small talk in the car, discussing what he was excited for and what he was nervous about. She attempted to calm his fears of camp, like having to share a room with someone he doesn’t know, by telling him he’s lucky this camp was housing them in  _ basically an upscale cabin _ . Tells him funny stories of the camp her parents sent her to once where she had to sleep in a tent (she never went back again) which caused Henry to laugh, saying he can’t imagine her sleeping in a tent. They even sang to the radio and talked about what she was going to do while he was gone. 

Even after all of that, however, she can tell he’s bothered by something. She has a pretty good feeling that it’s Daniel, but she was honestly hoping the excitement of camp would overrule having to talk about last night’s events.

He finally speaks up, saying, “Are you okay, Mom?”

“Of course, sweetheart,” she tells him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and kissing the top of his head. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I just mean,” he pauses. “Did… did Dad hurt you last night?”

Her heart breaks at that question and the worry written all over her son’s face. Pulling back to look in his eyes, Regina places her hand under his chin, bringing his face up to look at hers. She’s always been honest with her son, has always told him that honesty is the best policy, so, then, she has to follow her own advice it would seem. 

“Yes. He did.” At his widened eyes, she assures him, “But I’m okay, honey.”

She tells him, leaving out most of the details, that Daniel was upset and took his frustration out on her in an unsafe way. “He hurt my wrist, but, see?” she shows Henry her wrist, still a little red, and moves it around in every direction, “I’m fine!”

Henry’s brows furrows, a serious look on his face. “I don’t want to go to camp anymore.” He picks up his duffle bags and starts to walk toward their parked car with a determined scowl on his face.

“What?” She laughs out in disbelief, turning to catch him by the arm. “You, sir, are going to camp. You’ve been so excited for this for months. You  _ earned _ this trip. You’re going.”

“I need to stay home and protect you.”

Smiling down at her vigilante of a child, she tells him she’ll be fine. “You’re father is  _ not _ going to bother me while you’re gone.”

Huffing and sliding his eyes to the side and back to hers, like the almost pre-teen that he is, he crosses his arms before saying, “Well, will you at least stay with Robin until I get back?”

With an amused smile on her face, she asks, “Will it make you feel better if I stay with him?”

“Yes!” He exclaims, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

Chuckling at his insistence, she brings him into another hug and buries her nose into his hair that has been warmed by the sun’s rays. She’s touched by his worry and wants to calm his fears however she can. “Okay, then. I’ll stay with Robin.”

She was already planning on spending  _ most _ nights with Robin and Roland, whether that was in her apartment or his, but if telling Henry that she’ll spend  _ every _ night with him gets him into that camp, then that’s what she’ll say.

He mumbles out an  _ okay _ before pulling back. His eyes are shiny, and, well, no, she can’t have her baby in tears. 

She asks him, “Why the tears, hm?” and he scrubs at his eyes, saying he’s not crying but that he’s going to miss her. He’s going to be gone for three solid weeks, the longest they’ve ever been apart, so she knows he’s probably as nervous as she is about it. 

“It’ll be fine, Henry. You’re going to have so much fun!” She’s going to miss him too, more than words can express, but if she gets emotional and tells him that, she knows he’ll never go inside.

Kissing his head again and running her hands down his arms, she takes him by the hand saying, “Now, come on. There’s a late luncheon for parents in there, and I want to get my free food.”

Turning to walk toward the camp’s door, Henry chuckles out a  _ mooom _ and heads inside with her.

While eating lunch, they talk with the family next to them about the writing projects that got both kids into the camp, which seems to relax Henry a bit more. Henry’s was a piece about superhero children joining forces to take down the villain who was older than the heroes; turns out it was a paradox to children standing up to bullies. He’d left a note at the end of his paper, a personal message, about how bullying is wrong and that if anyone reading his story has been bullied, they needed to talk to someone, said that he was available to speak to if they didn’t feel comfortable talking with an adult about it. It was adorable, and sweet, and so incredibly like her son. Always standing up for people. The girl next to them, Violet, had won for her school by submitting an informational piece about the rainforest and how humans were destroying it one tree at a time. 

Violet’s family finishes their lunches and take their leave, going to her cabin to get her things settled. Regina and Henry decide to sit there a little bit longer, talking about how Henry was excited to ride the horses but also to take swimming lessons. 

“What about your writing classes?” Regina asks in mock astonishment. She knows he’s excited for his writing classes, but those horses seem to be in the forefront of his mind. She chuckles when he raises his eyebrows in surprise.

“Oh yeah!” He bellows, “Those will be fun, too!”

Laughing, she stands to take their empty plates to the trash can. 

When she gets back to their table, Henry is engrossed with a game on his iPad. The camp said it was okay for students to bring personal devices, but she has a feeling he won’t be using it much once he makes friends and gets busy with all his classes.

“Alright, baby,” she says, checking the time on her phone and then pushing it into her back jean pocket. “We need to go get your things settled in your room.”

Standing, the pair make their way to his cabin. It’s nice, much nicer than any tent she’d stayed in as a child. There are four beds and a bathroom, just the perfect size for children to share. Upon seeing that he was going to have  _ three _ roommates instead of just one, Regina has to reassure him that it will be fine when he starts to fret.

They unpack his belongings and plug in his iPad to charge before heading back out to walk around for a little bit and check out all the activities the camp has to offer. She has to leave soon if she is going to have time to shower and get ready for dinner with her mother, but she isn’t quite ready to leave her baby boy just yet.

He’s still nervous but seeing other kids already riding horses and running around a big field together settles his nerves a little bit. “I can’t wait for classes tomorrow,” he tells her. 

“Well, good,” she says, running a hand through his hair. “They’ll be a lot of fun, I’m sure.”

She’s glad he seems to be feeling more comfortable already. She knows he’s going to love this camp if he just gives it a real chance. Might even have a hard time getting him to leave when the three weeks are up, she muses.

Regina tells him it is almost time for her to go. They leisurely make their way back to his cabin, stopping by the snack machine to get him some food to nibble on at night, so she can grab her purse. 

One of his roommates, Nicholas, is already there, so she introduces herself to his parents while Henry greets the other boy before turning toward her son. “Okay, sweetheart, I have to go now.”

Looking up from his roommate’s tablet, he stands and wraps his arms around her waist, squeezing her for good measure. “I love you, Mom.”

Leaning down to press her cheek to the top of his head, she whispers that she loves him, too. 

She will not cry in front of her son, his roommate, nor his parents, but god, she doesn’t want to let him go. It’s silly, she knows. It’s three weeks, and he’s going to have a great time. Already seems to get along with his roommate in the five minutes he’s known him, although having a zombie game on his iPad helped a little in that.

Clapping her hands onto his shoulders, she looks down into his hazel eyes. “I’m going to miss you,” she tells him, pursing her lips together. “Remember to call me  _ every _ day.”

“I will,” he chuckles, going to pick up the cell phone she’d gotten him just for this trip. Ten is still too young to have a real phone in her opinion, but this cheap little pay-as-you-go phone will be good enough for him to call her at night before bed.

Henry leans up then, pressing a kiss to her cheek. She returns the kiss before turning to pick up her purse and sling it across her body. 

She tells the other family that it was nice meeting them before looking at Henry one last time. 

“Be good. And careful,” she tells him sternly. “But most of all… have fun, sweetheart. And don’t worry about me. I’ve got plenty to do.”

Henry smiles then, reminding her to tell Robin and Roland he will call and talk to them as well.

Hugging and kissing him  _ one _ more time, she leaves with an, “I love you,” falling from her lips.

Making her way to her car, she sends Robin a text, letting him know that Henry has been dropped off and she’s headed home to shower and change for dinner with her mom.

_ Are you okay after leaving him?  _ He texts back, to which she smiles, saying she’s fine, she just misses him already. 

He sends her another text telling her he knows, that they’ll just have to distract her for the next three weeks and for her to be careful on the drive back. He tells her to try and have fun with her mum tonight and he’d see her tomorrow, says not to worry about coming over tonight since it’ll be too late.

_ I know you’ll most likely be exhausted after the long day you’ve had between work and driving Henry to camp… and the dinner with your mum I know you are just dying to get to. _ He adds the last bit with a winky face emoji, causing Regina to snort out a laugh and shake her head.

He tells her that him and Roland will come pick her up to do something in the morning. 

Smiling, she responds with a  _ Sounds like a perfect plan _ .  _ Thanks babe  _ and sets her phone down, buckling in for the hour long drive back home. 

She’s nervous for dinner. Fidgety even, turning the radio station half way through each song, readjusting the temperature of the air every few minutes and strumming her fingers along the steering wheel. Regina hasn’t seen her mother in several months. Her mother has always been, and probably always will be, a fan of Daniel’s. She’s positive she could tell her mother how crazy he went the other night, and she’d still love and defend him. He’s always seemed more like Cora’s son than Regina her daughter.

She contemplates and goes over every single situation she might find herself in tonight with her mother. She thinks about what she needs to wear in order to look presentable, how conversations might go, what she needs to order, and most of all, how she’s already dreading this dinner. If it were up to her, she’d just go grab dinner to take over to Robin’s, or maybe grab a quick bite to eat with Emma. But, no, she’s made these plans and she would never hear the end of it from her mother if she cancelled.

Once arriving back home, she needs to take a shower and get ready. Cora always expects perfection and will let Regina know if she doesn’t look how she expected. So, Regina feels the pressure to wear the right outfit. She glances down to the wrist Daniel had slammed into the cabinet last night, noting that it, thankfully, was still just red and not bruised. It really only hurt if she bent her wrist too much, anyway. She could definitely conceal that for dinner. Cora made reservations at a local, high end bistro, so Regina knows she needs to look  _ very  _ put together.

After showering, blow drying and straightening her hair (mother never was a fan of her curls), and applying a full face of makeup, Regina finally makes her way into her closet. She’s always been very organized, something Cora had instilled in her from the get go, so her closet is organized by clothing type. Walking over to her dresses, Regina scans her options. There’s lots of black dresses and different shades of red. There’s a few other colors, like the blue dress she wore on her first date with Robin, but tonight she thinks she’ll go for one of the red toned ones.

Slipping on a deep plum colored sleeveless dress, Regina pairs it with simple black pumps. After applying a final coat of dark red lipstick, Regina looks at herself in the mirror. She looks good, if she does say so herself. Regina takes pride in taking care of her body, and she loves form fitted dresses. They make her feel classy, professional when need be, but beautiful (and even a little sexy).

Satisfied that this ensemble will please Mother, she grabs her keys and purse and makes her way to dinner.

Cora is already there, waiting of course, when Regina arrives.

Glancing at her cell phone’s clock, she sees she’s actually right on time. Eight o’clock on the dot.

“Regina,” Cora greets, standing from the bench she was sitting on. Kissing her daughter’s cheek she says, “I almost didn’t think you were going to make it.”

Biting her tongue and kissing her cheek back she says, “Yes, well, it’s exactly eight, but I’ll try to be early next time.”

With a small grunt of dissatisfaction at Regina’s attempt to sass her, Cora turns and walks into the restaurant, telling Regina their table is ready and to follow her.

Taking a deep breath, Regina makes her way to the table. There’s already a bottle of wine waiting for them and complimentary rolls. Rolls that Regina will certainly not be eating because, heaven forbid, Cora see her eat any extra carbs with her meal.

“So, how are things going?” Cora asks as the waiter makes his way to the table.

After ordering their meals, a salad with grilled chicken and strawberries for Cora, and a grilled chicken breast atop a bed of rice for Regina, she goes on to tell her mother about work. She mostly talks about the farm house project and how the clients have made a lot of changes, but she’s almost finished with it. Talking about work with her mother is easy. It’s the main thing Regina has done in her life that Cora is proud of. She doesn’t have a terrible relationship with her mother, but it’s not the best either. So, talking about work is manageable.

She goes on to talk about Henry and his winning the Young Authors competition. Cora beams at that, commenting how talented of a writer Henry is.

“If only he were better at Math. He’d already be a shoe in for the best Ivy leagues in the country.”

“Yes, well,” Regina says, taking a sip of her wine to wash the chicken down, “he made a B in Math this year, which is great, so I think he’ll be fine for college. He  _ is _ only ten.”

Granted, that B was on the lower side, but her mother doesn’t need to know that. Her baby’s mind wasn’t designed for numbers. He’s a reader and an artist. A writer. And he’s inventive as hell. Plus, she and Robin have both been helping him with his math, and plan to continue working on it over the summer when he gets back, so she has no doubt he’ll be able to do better in the subject next school year.

“Of course, dear,” Cora says dismissively. Regina can’t help but pick up on the judgmental tone of her mother. Clearly Cora isn’t saying what she really wants to, but Regina isn’t sure she wants to hear her mother’s honest opinion. Henry is very smart and beyond creative. He’s been in the gifted program at school since he was six, and he’s passing all of his classes.

After a few minutes of talking about Cora’s job, she tells her how her father is sorry he couldn’t make it tonight. He’s out of the country on a business trip trying to shoe in the purchase of a new horse for the ranch, and Regina says she understands. She knew he was gone already, in fact. Regina makes it a point to talk to her father weekly, whereas she only speaks to her mother every couple of weeks.

They finish their meals in relative peace, but once the plates have been cleared, Cora speaks up.

“So, tell me about this new boyfriend of yours.”

Swallowing down her last sip of wine, Regina eyes her mother cautiously.

“Robin? I didn’t think you knew about him.” Granted, her father did, so he has probably mentioned it, but she still wasn’t sure why she was just now mentioning him.

“Daniel mentioned him the other day when I ran into him at the derby.”  _ Ah, _ Regina thinks,  _ of course. _

Sighing, she smiles at the thought of Robin. “Yes, he’s a wonderful man.”

“And how did you meet him?” It seems almost odd, Cora asking about him so casually. She loves Daniel and after every break up, she was the one convincing her to go back to him.

Nevertheless, Regina recounts how she met him through work. She tells her mother that he owns his own advertising company and how he is a client, which earns her an astonished look from her mother.

“A client?” Cora tuts, “Regina, dear.”

“Well, yes, but it didn’t start right away.” She tells her how Roland and Henry go to the same school and they became friends through their children. “After we spent time together, the four of us, for several weeks, he finally asked me out,” she finishes, smiling ear to ear. She finds talking about Robin makes her very happy, and she’s afraid of what her mother might say next. It’s part of the reason she hasn’t told Cora about Robin just yet. He’s been her happy little secret, and she didn’t want her mother to try and convince her otherwise.

“Well, his job is certainly impressive. Not as impressive as an upscale accountant, but…” Cora says, waving her hand dismissively in the air.

Sighing and shrugging her shoulders, trying not to roll her eyes, Regina brushes her mother’s comment off. Her mother’s judgemental attitude is causing the anger to rise up in Regina, but she takes a deep, calming breath to try and push it down. She will not let her mother take her joy away, no matter how hard she tries with her flippant remarks and judgmental looks.

Just then the waiter interrupts to bring the bill. Being the nice daughter she is, and because it’s expected of her, Regina takes out her card to pay. They sit there in a weighted silence until the waiter brings her card back. Thanking him, she fills out the tip portion, signs her name and closes the black book, setting the pen on top of it.

Looking back up to her mother’s cold stare, she says, “What is it, Mother? I can tell something is on your mind.”

“Well, I just think you should stop wasting your time with this advertising man and go back to Daniel.” She sighs. “He loves you so much, and you’ve been together for so long. You’re made for each other. And just think about poor Henry, dear. He needs to grow up in a stable environment, with both of his parents  _ together _ , happy, not tossed between houses with boyfriends coming in and out of the picture.”

Yes, because her having a boyfriend is the problem here.

“His name is Robin,” Regina shortly replies, blowing out a small breath of frustration. “And I  _ am _ thinking about Henry. I was miserable with Daniel for so long, and Henry’s much happier now that we have our own place. It’s been almost ten months, Mother, please let this go. I’m not going back to Daniel.”

“But you love Daniel,” Cora says, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world, like Regina is a child who needs things explained slowly to her. “You need to stop playing games with his heart, dear, and just go back to him. He misses you, and I know  _ his son _ misses seeing him every day. Think of all the things Henry could be doing with Daniel. We can sell your apartment and I can get some movers – “

No. That’s it.

Mentioning Henry and claiming she knows how her son feels are completely over the line. Cora doesn’t know how Henry feels, Regina does.  _ She’s _ his mother. She sees him every day and knows what makes him happy. He’s been more outgoing and done things he never would have tried in the past since they moved into their new apartment. Regina is pissed. She cuts Cora off by holding up her hand and slowly curling her fingers into her palm, saying, as calmly a possible, “I don’t love Daniel, Mother. I haven’t loved Daniel since Henry was  _ four _ years old. I would hope my own mother would recognize that by now.”

Cora scoffs out an, “And this new man?” ignoring her last statement. She’s sitting up taller now, looking down at Regina as if she were still a child. “This… Robin?” She says, flippantly waving her hand around as if his name doesn’t even matter to her. “You love  _ him _ ? You barely know the man. Certainly not like you know our Daniel,” she says indignantly.

“Yes!” Regina hisses heatedly, leaning into the table, hands gripping the edge of the table in an attempt to keep herself calm in public as she grits out her answer. “I do. I am  _ in _ love with Robin.” She’s angry at her mother for not even considering that she really  _ is _ over Daniel and that she really  _ is  _ in love Robin.

_ In love with Robin,  _ her mind echoes _. _

Huh. She, well… she doesn’t just have feelings for Robin, after all. She’s in love with him.

She’s known for a few weeks now, but actually saying it aloud really solidifies it. She’s  _ in _ love with him. This beautiful, loving, caring, wouldn’t hurt a hair on her head, makes her laugh every day, man. The man who chases their sons around the park and builds forts in the living room for them. The man that holds her at night, whispering sweet words into her ear as his hands and tongue do incredible things to her, bringing her to heights she’s never known. The man who she knows, even decades from now, would be making her laugh, just like the old couple she’d admired so many years ago. Robin has the  _ it _ factor. He’s it for her. He makes her feel comfortable and confident in herself, never makes her feel self conscious, and always does nothing but love and support her through everything. He’s the best man she’s ever met and she wonders how she got so lucky as to meet him… and why it took her so long to realize how she truly feels.

Sitting back in her seat and breathing heavily at the rush of emotions she’s just experienced, she tells her mother, “I need to go.”

Forget sitting here any longer being insulted for having an opinion that doesn’t match her mother’s. She needs to see Robin, needs to tell him how she feels  _ now _ before she loses her confidence. She just hopes with every fiber of her being that he feels the same way. Assumes he does based on his actions and words, but well, she just isn’t sure.

She stands abruptly from the table, grabbing her purse and ignoring Cora’s critical, raised eyebrows as she says, “Sit down, Regina. No need for the theatrics. We’re simply having a conversation.”

Taking a second to look at her mother disapprovingly, she whispers crossly, “Have a good night, Mother.” She walks away, leaving Cora at the table alone. At least she already paid for dinner.

{********************************}

He’s sitting on his couch, nodding off during the commercial breaks of House Hunters. He had put Roland to bed an hour ago, and he’d found himself flipping to HGTV. It’s a habit he’s formed when Regina isn’t there with him. It makes him feel like a part of her is there, plus he’s found some of these people really complain about the dumbest things, and he likes to see which house they finally end up with.

As the complaining couple finally picks house number two, there’s a knock on his front door. With furrowed eyebrows, wondering who it could be at ten o’clock at night, he stands and makes his way to the door. 

Looking through the peephole, a smile spreads across his face. Regina.

Opening the door, he goes to greet her with a, “Hello, lo – “

His words are cut off by her lips crashing onto his. Her heated kisses sending shivers down his spine and to other, more sensitive places, on his body. His arms wrap around her as her hands run through his hair. She moans into his mouth before pulling away.

Breathing heavily, she gives him the sexiest grin he’s ever seen. She lifts an eyebrow suggestively, and with a sultry voice, she asks, “Is Roland asleep?”

“Y - yes.” He breathes out, still trying to catch his breath from that kiss.

“Can I come in?” She purrs, pushing his chest slightly so he fumbles into his entryway. As soon as the door is closed, his lips are back on hers. It’s heated, and sloppy, but so,  _ so _ hot. Her hands are roaming all over his body, while his hands roam over hers. Their hands move up and down each other’s backsides before she grabs ahold of his shirt and his hands tangle into her hair. He’s fighting the urge to take her right there against the front door.

Reality crashes on him as she bites at his lower lip, and he realizes she’s supposed to still be out with her mum. Assuming something went wrong, he pulls her head back slightly from his face and pants out an, “Okay, slow down, love. What happened at dinner?”

He sees her sigh a little as she steps back from him, his question acting like a bucket of ice cold water to cool her down. She takes his hand and walks them into his living room. He sits down on the couch, a new episode of House Hunters has started, though they can’t hear it because he’d turned it down low when she knocked on his door. She joins him on the couch, smirking at his show choice and sits next to him.

She finally turns to face him, her right leg dangling over his thigh and into the space between his legs, and caresses his cheek. His hands rest on her knee caps as he looks into her eyes. He can see the desire in them and hopes she can see the same in his.

“She tried to convince me to leave you and go back to Daniel.”

Well, then. Bollocks.

“Oh,” he states, his shoulders falling slightly. He knows she doesn’t have the best relationship with her mother, but it’s also not the worst. She’s mentioned before that her mother has always been the one to convince her in the past to go back to Daniel, so to say he’s a little worried is an understatement. He loves Regina and never wants to be without her. Maybe he should have told her the moment he realized how he felt. Perhaps then she wouldn’t be so easily persuaded by her mother.

“But she helped me realize what I’ve known for a while.” He hears her say, a slight grin playing on her face.

He looks into her dark eyes. “What’s that?” He asks, hope bubbling up in his chest. 

“That… I love you,” she breathes out, her fingers nervously fiddling with sleeve of his shirt. After saying those three words, her eyes fall to watch her fingers play with his sleeve. She can’t seem to take her eyes off of it. He realizes she’s nervous, apprehensive to finally admit her feelings, and, hell, he can’t have that. 

“Oh, Regina,” Robin sighs, his heart bursting at hearing her say those three little words as if an arrow has just struck the organ through it’s center. He feels the same way and knows he needs to reassure her that his feelings match hers completely. Have for some time now.

He was planning on telling her tomorrow night after he took her to dinner, but, well, this works, too. He grabs her hands in order to draw her eyes back up to his. “I love you, too, darling.” He’s beaming at her as her eyes sparkle with emotion, a smile just as bright lighting up her face.

Looking deep into his eyes, her own welling up with tears, she says softly, “For so many years, I didn’t know I was looking for something more. Didn’t think I deserved more.” She’s twisting her fingers in his now, interlocking one hand as he brings his other up to tuck her hair behind her ear and cup the back of her neck.

Looking at her questioningly, he implores, “Why would you ever think that?” as he scrunches his eyebrows together and finishes with a, “You’re an incredible woman. A tad stubborn at times, but...” He grins at her in jest, leaning closer to peck her plump lips.

Laughing, she tells him about the old couple she’d seen outside her home when Henry was four, the old man helping his wife into the car and laughing at something she’d said, saying they just had something, a look in their eye, a comfort with each other, that she never felt with Daniel. She realized then that she was stuck in a relationship that she no longer wanted to be in, but saw no way of getting out, especially with her mother breathing down her neck.

“I could never quite pinpoint what that couple, or any other happy couple I ever met, had,” she says, tracing a line down his stubbled jaw and onto his bottom lip, giving it a gentle tap, “Until I found you,” she tells him, scrunching her nose and smiling cheekily at him.

Biting his lip to conceal a smirk, he says, “It’s totally different when you find a person that makes you feel…”

“Complete.” She finishes his sentence for him through a breathy exhale. He matches her exhale and pushes out a  _ yeah, exactly _ into the space between them. “You do that for me, Regina.” He tells her he had that with Marian, too, that feeling of rightness, and he says, “I just never thought I’d have that again.”

Sighing happily, she agrees, saying she never thought she’d find a love this like either, but, “I’m damn sure glad I did.”

Grumbling out a low chuckle, he leans in, as best he can with the way they’re sitting, and places a soft kiss to her lips. It’s soft but sensual. They’ve just taken their relationship to a whole new level, and he wants to kiss every inch of her skin right now, making sure she knows that every bit of her is perfect for him.

Moaning, Regina pulls up her dress a little bit so she can sling one leg over him to straddle his lap, deepening their kiss. His hands find purchase on her ass, while her hands start to lift his shirt. They break apart long enough for her to pull his t-shirt over his head and discard it somewhere on the floor behind them.

His hands are roaming now, moving from her ass to her back, into her hair, and back down again. She’s kissing along his lips and neck, sighing, and letting out soft moans. He moves his hands up to her dress’ zipper, but stops before he undoes it, looking into her eyes questioningly.

“You sure?”

“Yes,” Regina breathes out as she’s nodding her head. With that, Robin slowly pulls down her zipper. He can’t see anything back there, but the feel of her skin under his fingers is enough to have his erection pressing into her thigh.

As he stands up, her legs wrap around his waist, and he carries them to his bedroom, kissing along her neck and lips the whole way there.

Once there, her legs drop and he walks them to the bed as he slides her dress off her shoulders. When her legs hit the mattress, she scoots back so he’s able to get a good look at her. God, he loves to look at her. She’s gorgeous, and that look of love written all over her face anytime they are anywhere close to being intimate, the love they’ve finally spoken about out loud, sends a shock to his entire being. He loves this woman with every fiber of his soul. 

Her dress is now pushed up to her mid thigh and is pulled down to her waist. Her black, lace bra is the only thing covering her top half. That damn lace that she knows bloody well drives him mad for her. With that, he asks her coyly, “Did you wear that in hopes of coming here to seduce me tonight?” And she giggles, pulling him on top of her. He’s rubbing his hands up and down her sides and kissing her senseless, and as his lips make their way down to that black lace, he sucks on her now taught nipples through the fabric. While he’s sucking on one, his other hand lifts to knead her nipple of the other.

She moans at the contact, and her eyes close. Her hands are moving up and down his back, nails slightly scratching. Her hands move to the front and she’s reaching in between them to undo his zipper.

He moans into her chest, and her eyes shoot open. She grabs his shoulders, pushing on his chest to sit him up a little bit.

Confused, Robin sits up and asks her what’s wrong. This is nothing new to them, they’ve fooled around half naked plenty of times, so he’s not sure what the problem is.

“The door,” she laughs, pointing to his bedroom door that is still wide open.

“Oh,” he chuckles, standing to close and lock the door. 

When he turns around to face the bed again, he loses all the breath inside his body.

She’s removed her dress from around her waist, it’s sitting somewhere across the room in a heap. She’s sitting up, propped against his headboard in her matching black lace.  _ Christ _ , he thinks. She looks so sexy like this, and he tells her so. Her hair is slightly mussed from his hands being tangled in them and she’s breathing deeply, telling him to  _ get over here _ .

Not wasting a single second, he climbs onto the bed, pulling her legs so she sinks lower onto the mattress. She’s gorgeous and seeing her like this, he’s reminded again how much he loves her. He’s looking at her so reverently, like she’s a goddess sent from Zeus himself to give him all the love and passion in the world. She stares back at him with a smile on her lips, the weight of this moment crashing down on her. There’s a moment where it feels as if their souls connect, and they both know what is about to happen. They’ve both wanted it, and tonight they’re finally going to give in. They’re going to love each other fully.

He hooks his finger on the sides of her underwear and looks up into her eyes, asking, “Is this still alright?” to make sure. He knows how reluctant she’s been, and he doesn’t want one heated discussion with her mother to make her give in when she’s not truly ready.

Smiling softly at him, she nods. Grinning, he pulls the lace down her olive toned thighs and tosses them to the floor. Licking his lips, he begins placing soft kisses to her thighs as she sighs and lays her head back onto his pillow.

She sits up and unclasps her bra, letting it join her underwear on the floor of his bedroom. With that, Robin looks up. It’s the first time he’s seen her entire body completely naked. She’s never looked more beautiful to him than in this moment, with love shining in her eyes. Any other time they’ve messed around, they’ve only been partially naked. Either the top or the bottoms were off, never all of it at the same time. Now, she’s bare from tip to toes, all for him. They’re really going to have sex tonight and he can’t wait to be inside of her, showing her just how much he loves her.

Reaching up, he kneads her nipple on one breast while his other hand circles around her clit. She’s soaking wet already and he lets out a moan of his own to match the one escaping her lips.

“Oh, Robin,” she sighs. As if she’s suddenly remembering that he’s only naked from the waist up, and only his zipper undone, but pants still on, she pushes down on his jeans, encouraging him to remove them. “Take these off,” she whimpers, causing Robin to smirk. He shuffles around a bit to help her remove the clothing still restricting his body.

Once he does, it’s her who can’t keep her hands off of him. She grabs his shoulders and flips them so she’s straddling his stomach, her wet core rubbing against his belly button. She leans down and slowly trails kisses down his jaw, then his lips, running her tongue back down his neck.

She slides her way down so that she’s laying in between his thighs, his cock in her hands. She pumps him a few times before wetting her lips and lowering them to his head.

“Fuck, Regina,” he moans. Her lips feel like heaven wrapped around him. Her head bobs a few times while her hand twists along his length, and he almost wants to chuckle at them. They can’t seem to decide what they want – they want it all, every part of each other. They’re all over the place, but yet in the right place all at once, and he loves it.  Deciding he won’t last if she sucks him off, he pulls her up gently.

“I don’t want to come in your mouth, not now anyway,” he smirks, moving the hair that’s fallen into her face away.

All she can do is moan in response as he moves their bodies so he’s on top again and makes his way down, caressing her body all the way to where she really wants him. His lips are on her clit in an instant, causing another, louder moan to escape her lips. Looking up, he can see she is covering her mouth, knowing from experience that it’s so she doesn’t wake Roland.

Smiling at her thoughtfulness amidst what he’s doing to her core, he kisses her inner thigh and tells her, “It’s alright, baby. Roland is a heavy sleeper, remember? I’ll let you know if we get too loud.”

Chuckling, she takes her hand away from her mouth and runs her fingers through his hair. “Okay, then.”

With a wicked grin, he goes back to tasting her. His tongue takes long, slow licks up and down her center before closing in around her clit once again. One hand is anchored on her hips, while the other moves to her folds. He inserts two fingers, causing her back to arch and more sighs and curses to leave her beautiful lips before she’s muttering his name over and over again, grabbing his hair with one hand and fisting the sheets with the other.

“Christ, love,” he says, lifting his eyes to look at her face. Her eyes are squeezed shut and she’s panting heavily. He knows the signs, know she’s about to come, but he wants to hear her say it in that sexy, gravely voice she gets when he’s touching her. “Are you close?”

Looking at him under hooded eyes, she smiles coyly at him, nodding and telling him she won’t last much longer.

At his breathy  _ come for me, darling _ and a strong flick of his tongue, her muscles tighten around him as he sucks her clit one more time for good measure. Her hand instinctively grabs the back of his head, keeping him right where he is for a little bit longer as her mouth falls open with a moan of  _ R - Robinnn! _

Panting, she looks down at him and smiles. He loves that smile so damn much, and he will do anything to keep it on her face. Sliding up her body, he moves in to kiss her mouth, letting her taste herself on his tongue as his hands glide over her curves.

She moans into the kiss, saying she tastes good, making his cock twitch against her leg. Fuck, this woman could make him come just by talking dirty to him. She reaches down with a sultry smirk on her face, wrapping her hands around his length and saying, “Inside me. Now.” And, well, who is he to tell her no?

{*************************}

Her body is on fire. She feels glorious. She and Robin have messed around for weeks now but nothing as wanton and passionate as this. His tongue felt amazing on her clit like always, and her orgasm was intense, but now all she wants is his cock inside of her. She wants to come around  _ him _ for once, not just his fingers and tongue like usual. She loves this man, and he loves her, and she’s finally ready to let her walls down and be with him completely. 

After telling him so, he quickly grabs a condom from his nightstand, slipping it on before settling in between her legs again. He’s looking into her eyes, asking if this is still okay, if she still wants this to happen. His care and concern make her love him even more in the moment, and she can’t help but feel a flustered sensation in her belly, like she’s about to go down the biggest descent on a roller coaster, when he looks at her like he is now. He’s looking at her with such intense affection in his eyes, that she can’t help but pull him in for another powerful kiss.

Pulling apart, he tells her, “I love you,” to which she tells him she loves him, too, right before she takes hold of his cock and guides it to her entrance. 

Sliding in, almost down to the hilt, she lets out an elated moan. He’s thick, has always felt full and weighted in her hand and mouth, but,  _ oh _ , letting him inside her is glorious. Why did she wait so long to let him fuck her? His moan is louder than the ones she’s been letting out, and she reminds him not to get too loud. They wouldn’t want Roland to wake up because of their cries of passion. No matter how heavy a sleeper he is, it is still an embarrassing possibility. Not exactly a conversation they’d want to have with a five year old.

Sighing, she begins rocking underneath him, trying to get more friction where she needs him most. He is confident in his movements, a rhythmic thrusting into her, in and out, over and over again. He then glides her hand down between their bodies, encouraging her to touch herself. She’d admitted one night while his lips were around her clit that there was something hot about touching herself while being pleasured, and he agreed, telling her it was  _ sexy as hell _ when she did that. She’s glad to see he listened and remembered because she’s been too distracted by the feel of his cock inside her to do it herself. When she massages her clit, it causes her to let out a little yell followed by  _ fuck, yes, Robin! _ This is the best sex she’s ever had, and touching herself while he thrusts into her only adds to the excitement she feels.

He’s kissing her now, trying to swallow her screams and quiet his own noises. She loves him so much and the feel of him pounding into her is almost too much to take. It’s when she guides one of his hands to grab her breast that he clearly starts to lose it. She can tell he’s trying to hold out, though, so she can finish first. Didn’t think she’d come again after her first one, but,  _ fuck _ , he feels amazing, is hitting all the right spots, so she just might. Knows she will, in fact.

“Yes, Regina, just - just like that,” he tells her as her other hand reaches behind and squeezes his ass. She loves this, loves that they can wordlessly express what they want the other one to do. His cock thrusts into her and out again, almost slipping out before crashing back into her in the most delicious way possible. This is amazing and she never wants it to end. She would have sex with him repeatedly every single day if she could. Maybe they can find a weekend Tink is willing to watch both boys overnight so they can do just that.

In a fancy hotel. With a hot tub. And a - “Oh, yes!” she pants, Robin effectively pulling her from her sex filled weekend getaway fantasy with the thrust of his cock.

It’s a little frenzied and eager now that he’s inside of her but also sweet and loving like she always imagined their first time being. She doesn’t think she’ll ever tire of the way he looks into her eyes as he thrusts into her or the way his body feels on top of hers, sweat slicked stomachs rubbing together and all.

“Oh god, Robin – mmmm – I’m gonna – oh god – come,” she says as he pulls his head from her neck and down to meet her lips again, his cock moving in and out of her center.

“That’s it, love, let go for me, come for – “ with that, Regina arches her back and comes again, her walls tightening around his cock, moaning his name and panting. A few more thrusts and he’s joining her, spilling his seed into the condom and shouting her name.

They lay there, him still inside of her, breathing deeply. He grabs her hand that had been inside of her and licks them clean, looking into her eyes as he does so. It’s the hottest thing she’s ever witnessed, and she’s a little jealous of her own fingers right now as his tongue flutters across them. Once they’re clean, she begins rubbing her hands up and down his arms, while he places soft kisses to her shoulder and neck. When their breath starts to return to normal, he looks up at her.

“Wow,” he says as she giggles, bringing her hand up to rub through her own hair, moving some of it to the other side. She’s covered in a light sheen of sweat and needs her hair off of her neck to cool down some.

“Yeah,” she breaths, propping herself up onto her elbows. “That was...”

“Amazing,” he finishes for her, placing a kiss to her ribs.

“Yeah. It was.” She smiles, pulling him up so he can kiss her lips, slightly tasting herself on his tongue again. 

“Makes me wonder why we didn't do this a few weeks ago,” she smirks, running her hand along the outside of his arm.

“Well,” he says, leaning down to press a kiss to her lips, “you were suffering from nerves and a bit of apprehension… and I wasn't going to push you.”

Smiling, she brings her face up to meet his, placing a lingering kiss to his mouth, moving her lips down to his neck to suck on his pulse point. “True,” she breathes out, telling him she loves him all the more for  _ not _ pushing her. 

Another nip to her shoulder and he slowly pulls himself up and out of her, removing his condom and throwing it away in the bathroom trash can.

He joins her back in the bed, and she curls into his chest, body feeling completely boneless for the moment. The hand resting on his stomach is her injured one, and he lifts it up gingerly, caressing his thumb over her skin delicately and placing a kiss to the red mark on the top of it.

She smiles softly into his chest, burying her cheek further into him and placing a kiss to his shoulder.

After a few minutes of laying there, just enjoying the feel of each other, Robin looks down at her.

“I could use a shower. Care to join?” He asks, wiggling his eyebrows.

Laughing softly, she agrees, “We are quite sticky, aren’t we?” she asks, twitching her eyebrow up quickly.

Standing from the mattress, he takes her hand and they scurry off into the bathroom, giggling like teenagers sneaking in past curfew.

{***************************}

After a hot shower and even hotter shower sex, they finally towel off and get dressed. Roland has a tendency to wake Robin up in the mornings, and even though the door is locked, he’d hate to explain to his overly curious five year old why it took his papa so long to open his door in the morning if he had to spend time throwing on clothes.

Since Regina didn’t plan to come over tonight, Robin loans her one of his t-shirts. He’s laying in bed while she stands across the room and slips it on. He looks up as she’s making her way over to the bed, and he can’t help the way his heartbeat speeds up seeing her in his t-shirt and a pair of his boxers, which decidedly look far sexier on her than him. She’s gorgeous, a bloody goddess, and he can’t believe he gets to sleep next to her.

Lifting the covers for her, she climbs in and lays her head on his chest. He’s only wearing sweat pants, and he shivers at the sensation of her nails lightly rubbing over his bare chest, tracing patterns on his skin.

Lifting her hand to his lips, he places a soft kiss to her fingers. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” She leans up to place a gentle kiss to his lips. It lingers for a moment, longer than a peck, but not intending to start another round of sex. It’s sweet and full of love, and Robin wants nothing more than to kiss her like this every night.

“You know what’s funny,” he says with a chuckle, causing Regina to look up at him.

At her  _ hmm? What’s that? _ He smiles and says, “Well, I just find it amusing that you beat me to the punch on this whole  _ I love you _ thing.”

“What do you mean?” she chuckles, shifting her body to look at him more fully.

He twists his body, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear and cupping her cheek. “I was going to tell you how much I truly love you tomorrow after I whisked you off to a romantic dinner.”

“Oh, Robin,” she breathes out, reaching up to take his hand from her cheek and interlock their fingers. “I’m sorry.” Her eyebrows scrunch in sympathy, telling him she’s sure his big  _ I love you _ reveal would’ve been beautiful.

“I feel bad now,” she half teasingly breathes out, leaning over to place a kiss to his lips.

Wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer to his body, he chuckles, saying, “Oh, it’s alright, my love. The way you did it ended up working out  _ much _ better for us in the end.”

She laughs out at that, swats his chest and wags her eyebrows, saying, “Yeah, it did!” causing him to laugh along with her.

Taking a breath, she runs her hand through the top of his hair before placing a soft kiss to his lips.

She lays her head back down on his chest, letting his heartbeat lull her into a relaxed state.

After a pause of sleepy silence, she tells him softly, “Tomorrow is Sunday.” He hums his acknowledgment, running his hand from where it’s nestled in her hair down her back as she tells him, “We don’t have to work, so we should do something together with Roland… if you want.”

“Of course, darling. That sounds like a wonderful plan. We can ask him in the morning what he wants to do. Though I’m quite sure he’ll be sad remembering Henry isn’t around to play with.” Robin says, inhaling the smell of his woodsy scented shampoo lingering in her hair, the thrill of that sensation sending a tingle down his spine.

Sighing, she tells him Roland isn’t the only one who will be sad Henry isn’t there.

He knows that being away from Henry for three weeks is going to be rather hard for her. It would be for any parent. 

Hell, he had tried to let Roland go stay with Marian’s parents in Rhode Island once for a week when he was four and that alone had been enough to have his nerves on edge. It didn’t last long though, ended after only about two days. They’d had to call Robin in the middle of the second night with a screaming Roland on the other end saying he missed his papa and his bed and wanted to come home. Robin had gotten in his car right that instant and made the two and a half hour drive despite the late hour to pick him up.

He knows it’s a bad habit, but Roland isn’t even six. Week long trips out of state are a big commitment compared to the slumber parties he’s gone to over the last year. It’s been the two of them majority of Roland’s life so it’s hard to be away for too long for either of them.

“When can you talk to him?”

Regina shrugs her shoulder up, saying, “He promised to call every day. Hopefully he’ll call tomorrow when I’m with you guys, and Roland can talk to him.” She traces a circle above his heart before sliding her hand down to rest on his stomach.

“He would love that,” he says as a yawn escapes her lips. “Get some sleep, love, and we’ll talk to Henry tomorrow.”

“Ok,” she yawns again, making him yawn, too. “Goodnight, Robin. Love you”

His heart swells hearing her say those words. He doesn’t think he’s ever going to get tired of hearing her say it. “Night, babe. I love you, too.” With that, they both drift off into a peaceful sleep, wrapped in each other’s arms.

 


	9. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew! It’s been a few months. Hopefully y’all are still interested in seeing what happens with these love birds. If you need a refresher of last chapter: Regina and Henry spent the night at Robin’s after Daniel attacked Regina. She also dropped Henry off at camp the next day, had a frustrating dinner with Cora which helped her admit to herself that she loves Robin. She went to Robin’s apartment and they got it on for the first time. Man, a lot happened, huh? Lol… Hope that helps!  
> Let me know what y’all think of the newest chapter!  
> {*******************************}

**Chapter Nine**

When Regina’s eyes open, thanks to the morning’s sunlight streaming in through the cracked blinds in the room, she’s wrapped in Robin’s arms, completely content. She’d turned her body at some point in the night and is now facing him.

He’s still asleep, so she takes a few moments to stare at his face, soaking in every detail, almost as if she’s trying to memorize the way he looks in this moment. She loves Robin and had told him of those feelings the week before when she’d finally let her last remaining walls crumble and had given herself completely to him.

Picking up her head a little, she places a soft kiss to his cheek before running her hand over that same spot, savoring the feel of his stubble under her fingers. She remembers how that stubble felt in other places last night and smiles to herself.

Robin stirs slightly, so she takes it upon herself to wiggle from his arms, moving so she’s straddling his middle. It’s almost time for Roland to wake up, and she wants to give Robin a proper good morning before they start their day.

“You’re a bloody minx, y’know that?” he slurs groggily, peeking up at her from one half open eyelid.

Laughing, Regina leans down and presses a kiss to his lips, which he returns easily.

“Look who’s finally woken up.” She glances down between their bodies at his hardening member and adds, “Looks like  _ all _ of you is up.”

Regina’s never been the greatest winker, but she gives it her best shot, winking at him (which is more of a blink) and lowering her head to kiss him again.

His hands have apparently woken up now, because they begin to move along her body, sending a flutter down her spine. Goosebumps rise on her skin as his grip tightens on her hips, holding her in place.

She grinds her hips as much as she can, sending a sultry smirk down his way. Regina takes Robin’s hands from her hips and holds them above his head, pressing them into the pillow as she interlocks their fingers. She loves the feel of his fingers wrapped around hers.

As her tongue peeks out, seeking entrance into his mouth, he groans and welcomes it willingly. She moves her lips to trace his jaw before slowly placing soft kisses and nips down his neck to give his shoulder a little bite. Letting his hands go, she wiggles her body down so she’s laying between his legs. She reaches inside his boxers, stroking his length and licking her lips.

She looks up into Robin’s eyes when he lets out a moaned  _ God, Regina, _ and says, “I think I know what I want for breakfast.”

Rolling his eyes back into his head and placing his head deeper into his pillow, Robin grunts, “Wh-what’s that, love?”

Giving him her best evil grin she can, she pumps his cock and mumbles a seductive, “You,” before lowering her lips onto his hard member.

{****************************}

After a  _ very _ good wake up from Regina, a round of returning the oral favor to her, and another very soapy,  _ very _ hot shower, Robin and Regina make their way out of the bedroom.

As they’re coming into the kitchen, Roland joins them, dragging his favorite stuffed dinosaur behind him and rubbing his eyes, letting out a giant yawn.

“Good morning, my boy,” Robin says, rubbing his son’s back when he wraps his little arms around his father’s legs, dinosaur dropping completely to the floor behind him.

“Mornin’ Papa… Gina.”

After Roland joins Regina at the kitchen table, where he leans into her side, still tired from his slumber, Robin announces he thinks they should all go to breakfast at Granny’s.

Roland perks up at this idea, saying he’ll go change, scooping up his toy and running off into his bedroom to pick out his clothes for the day. Robin taught him early on how to dress himself, so luckily, he hasn’t had to help his son get dressed, save for a few occasions, since he was about three years old.

“Robin,” Regina says, standing and joining him at the kitchen counter, “I can’t go to Granny’s in the outfit I have on.” Glimpsing down at her in his black boxers adorned with tiny pine trees and fox heads (a Christmas gift from Roland that his son had giggled about) and his plain, white t-shirt, Robin smirks saying he wouldn’t wear his underwear out to breakfast either.

Chuckling, she adds, “I mean my dress, silly. It’s wrinkled by now since we left it on your floor last night.” She smirks, causing his grin to match hers. They’d gone on a date the previous night, and in the heat of the moment, they hadn’t thought to hang her dress up so it wouldn’t wrinkle during the night. Leaning down to place a kiss to her lips, he tells her they can swing by her apartment so she can change and then they’ll go eat.

“You might as well just pack a bag since you’ve been,  _ thankfully _ , sleeping here most nights anyway since Henry’s been gone.” He leans in again to give her cheek a kiss before playfully swatting at her rear.

Jumping away a little bit and laughing, Regina tells him he’s right, saying, “I’ll pack for a few nights when we go.”

Roland runs out then, wearing jeans and a navy blue shirt with “Surfs Up” written in a mint color, exclaiming he’s ready for Granny’s.

Robin snickers and moves from behind Regina to scoop up his son, telling him, “Let papa change. We’ll take Regina home to change clothes, and then we’ll go.”

Excited at the idea of going to Regina’s, Roland clambers out of Robin’s arms and makes his way over to her, chattering away about her apartment and all the fun things he’s done there.

“I really like your aparment,” he hears Roland tell her, adorably mispronouncing the word.

“Apar _ t _ ment, sweetheart,” she corrects softly, “and I’m glad you do. Maybe we can convince your papa to hang out there for a little bit today.”

Robin has no doubt between both of their pleading, chocolate eyes, that he will cave and give in to their desires. “So we can work on the Dr. Seuss puzzle?”

They’ve worked on that damn Dr. Seuss puzzle several times now with Regina, completing it, taking it apart, and doing it again. But if that’s what Roland wants, then who are they to deny him?

“Maybe,” she giggles, ruffling his tousled hair.

Chuckling at their interaction, Robin hurries to his room, quickly changing into jeans and a forest green t-shirt before joining the two of them again. Regina is just finishing brushing through Roland’s hair, telling Robin he needs to get some more detangling spray before long as Roland winces at a particularly large knot being brushed out. He make a mental note to pick some up later today as he grabs his keys. The trio make their way out of his apartment, all climbing into Robin’s 4-Runner, excited for the day together.

{******************************}

Once Regina has changed into jeans and a black tank top, the three of them head to Granny’s.

It’s busy today, which he should’ve known. It’s Sunday, and the church crowd is out and about now that most services have finished, adding to the already busy crowd of people that frequent the diner for breakfast.

Sitting down in the first available booth, Robin smiles when he sees Roland chooses to sit with Regina. It warms his heart to see how his little boy has taken to the woman he loves so much.

“What can I get for ya?” the dark haired waitress asks when she gets to the table.

After ordering juice for Roland, and coffee and two waters for the adults, Regina looks down to Roland, asking him what he’d like to do today.

“Talk to Henry!” Roland exclaims as Regina softly smiles at his son. “I really love him.”

Robin’s breath hitches slightly in his throat at the boy’s sweet admission (which he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world). “Me too, baby,” Regina whispers to him, wrapping her arms around the boy’s shoulders. She gives him a gentle squeeze as she looks over toward Robin, eyes a little bit glassier than they were a moment ago. He loves his kind hearted son, a trait he more so got from his mother than him. Marian was always a bit more tender hearted than he. Robin has known that Roland looks up to Henry, but hearing him say he loves the older boy brings a certain amount of joy to his heart. He loves Regina and Henry, and he’s so glad his son does too (not that he ever really doubted it).

Pulling him from his thoughts, Regina asks Roland, “But what  _ else _ would you like to do?”

Roland goes on to babble out ideas as only a child can do - go to the park, the museum, fly to space, feed a pig - and the list went on.

Chuckling, Robin tells him, “I don’t know if some of those are possible today, son. NASA might not let us all get on their rocket.” Smirking over at his son’s confused, scrunched up face, Robin takes hold of Regina’s hand that is resting on the table.

This action causes her eyes to leave his son’s and look into his. Her eyes are a beautiful, chocolate brown, and the way the sun is shining on them from the window makes them appear to have flecks of gold in them. He’s convinced he could stare into those expressive eyes of hers every second of the day and never grow tired of it.

The waitress comes over a few more times, delivering their drinks and taking their orders, checking on them while they wait and assuring them it won’t take much longer. It’s taking longer than normal because of all the extra people, but Robin assures her it’s fine.

“Would you like some paper and a pen for the little one to draw on?” the waitress, Ruby, as they’ve come to learn is her name, offers.

“Yeah!” Roland shouts, bouncing up and down in the booth’s seat.

Laughing, Robin thanks Ruby. She tells them she has a son about his age, so she understands needing to keep them busy while they wait on food.

“My son can throw a holy terror if I don’t get food in him on time, so my wife and I have definitely found ways to distract him.”

Ruby hands Roland a piece of paper from her notebook and a pen from her apron. “Thank you,” Roland tells her, dimples shining brightly, before picking up the pen and writing his name.

He’s just finished Kindergarten, so he knows how to write, but Robin has come to discover that his son is quite the perfectionist and wants to practice writing his name and numbers any chance he gets so that his handwriting is better before he goes to first grade.

Robin looks down at his phone to check his work email, and when he brings his eyes up again, he can’t help but to smile. Regina has one arm around Roland while he’s pressed into her side. She’s helping him write a sentence about an orange bird that he’s just made up, but the sight of her helping his son, being so motherly with him, warms his heart. He’s so glad, in that moment, that Roland finally has a woman in his life that he can look up to. He knows Marian would have loved Regina, and she would approve of their relationship.

After their food is delivered, Regina places Roland’s work into her purse and tells him they can play sight word tic-tac-toe, a fun game Henry taught him weeks ago, after they eat.

Robin has ordered the Big Boy Breakfast special, complete with two pancakes, four slices of bacon, and eggs. Regina ordered toast with scrambled eggs, while Roland has a bowl of oatmeal and a piece of toast. Robin ordered the breakfast special originally intending to share some of it with Roland, but he’s hungrier than he thought, so he thinks he might just be able to finish it all (minus the slice of bacon Regina just swiped from his plate with a smirk full of amusement on her lips) on his own.

“Can I have some of your pancake, Papa?” Roland asks in between bites of his apple and cinnamon flavored oatmeal. Never one to deny his son, too much anyway, he cuts one of his pancakes into fourths, putting one piece of it on a small plate that Ruby brought over.

While Regina is cutting his pancake up for him, Robin sees his little eyes roaming over Regina’s plate.

With widened eyes, he says, “What kind of toast is that, Gina?”

She tells him it’s cinnamon raisin toast and lets him take a few bites.

When he goes to ask for more of their food, Regina steps in and states, “You need to eat  _ your _ food, young man, that’s why your papa ordered it for you.” Running her hand through his curls, she finishes with, “You’ll get a belly ache if you eat too much, and then we won’t be able to fly to the moon or anything.”

Smirking at their adorable interaction, Robin watches as Roland nods, in the most serious manner, and tells her he definitely doesn’t want that, and starts eating his oatmeal again.

Her eyes turn to him then, shrugging a shoulder and lifting one eyebrow. “What do you want to do today?”

They discuss plans for the afternoon, agreeing they should go to the zoo once they finish there, while it’s not too hot outside.

“We can see the flamingos!” Roland exclaims, telling them he loves those pink birds and their skinny legs.

Laughing around his last bite of food, Robin swallows and says they’ll definitely go see the flamingos. “What else do you want to see, Roland?”

Roland prattles off a list of animals he wants to see at the zoo, including lions, tigers, gorillas, sharks, and giraffes.

“I don’t think they have sharks at the zoo, sweetheart.” Regina giggles, “Those would be at the aquarium.”

With widen eyes, Roland sits up saying, “Can we go there, too!?”

Robin tells him they’ll have to go another day, one place is good enough for an afternoon (and his wallet) to which the boy slumps down and says a quiet  _ okay, Papa. _

Ruby brings the check over, and Regina argues with him that she can pay her part of the bill.

“Ruby put it all together already, and it’s busy in here. We wouldn’t want to waste any more of her time by making her split the check, darling,” he says, biting his lip to keep his grin at bay.

Pursing her lips, she lets out a little huff and a  _ fine _ .

Smiling in triumph, Robin pays for breakfast and the three of them stand to leave. Before they can get out the door, Ruby is coming over to their table, smiling and collecting their receipt.

“Have a fun time at the zoo!” she tells them. Looking up at Robin, she smiles at him, saying,  “Your family is beautiful,” before waving a quick goodbye and hustling off to her next table.

Smiling at her mistake, Robin couldn’t help but agree with her.

{**************************}

The day is spent at the zoo, and Roland is amazed at each new animal display they come to but decides that the monkeys are his new favorite. 

“Look at that one, Gina!” Roland exclaims, pointing to the smallest monkey in the simian enclosure.

“I see it! It’s so tiny.” The little brown monkey can’t be bigger than a newborn baby and is actually very, very cute.

Glancing over Roland’s head to Robin, she gives him a small smile. He’s been taking pictures of Roland all day at the zoo, wanting to capture as many moments as he can. Regina had told him the other night that his kid was  _ too cute not to post on Instagram _ , causing Robin to laugh. He has an account but rarely uses it, but Regina was determined to change that. The world, or his friends at least, needed to be able to see Roland’s adorable dimples. She may be biased, but she thinks he’s the cutest five-year old out there (Henry, of course, being the cutest ten year old).

“Let me take your picture together,” Regina says, unlocking her phone and pulling up the camera. “Stand over there with your Papa.”

Roland scampers closer to Robin, always one to be up for taking a picture, and lifts his arms up. Bending down to pick him up, Robin then settles the boy on to his hip. 

“Make sure you can see the baby one,” Roland tell her with all seriousness in his tone.

Nodding, she grins, telling them to shift a little to the left so it’ll be in the background.

Snapping the picture just in time to capture the baby monkey standing on his mother’s shoulders, Regina laughs and turns the phone around to show her dimpled duo.

“Brilliant!” Robin laughs, pointing to the baby monkey in the picture to Roland. “Look at that baby on his mum’s shoulders.”

Roland giggles, turning to place his hands on the fence and lean as close as possible to the animals. He’s talking to the monkeys as if they can understand him, and Regina shakes her head. He really is just too adorable.

Robin’s arm comes to rest on her waist, whispering in her ear that he thinks they might be there for a while. “He doesn’t seem to remember there are other animals in this zoo.”

Kissing his cheek, she smirks, saying, “Luckily there’s some shade other there.” There’s a few benches that have an awning over them, providing just enough shelter from the summer’s blazing sun, which was hotter this early in the afternoon than they’d originally assumed. They are close enough to the monkey enclosure that parents can sit while their kids observe the animals. There’s a sheer net attached to the fence and going all the way up, so there’s no worry of children falling in. They’d all slathered on the sunscreen before getting out of the car earlier, but the heat was making sweat roll down her back, so she and Robin walk to sit on the nearest vacant bench.

“I’m going to go buy us all some water bottles,” Robin says, kissing the side of her head. She grimaces, knowing full well that her forehead has sweat on it, but he didn’t seem to mind.

Regina gets back up after a few moments of resting her feet, not liking Roland being by himself for too long, even though she’s practically within two arm lengths of him.

“You still watching the baby one?”

With an overly excited  _ yeah! _ he points toward the baby who is taking a nap on his mother’s back. “It’s so cute.”

Smiling, she tells him it is. “But maybe we could go look at some other animals when your papa gets back.” She reminds him that there are elephants and giraffes on this same side of the zoo that she’s sure he wants to see before he gets too tired, as well as the flamingos he’d talked so much about this morning on the other side.

“I’m not gonna get tired, Gina,” he vows to her, even though they both know that isn’t true. Roland loves his naps still and after being out in the heat all day, she knows he’s going to need one later.

“Here you go, my loves,” Robin says, walking toward them and handing them each a cold bottle of water. 

Thankful for the coolness against her skin, Regina opts to hold the bottle to her neck instead of taking a sip. “Ah,” she breathes, briefly closing her eyes and tilting her head back, “that feels good.”

Once they’ve cooled down with their water, Robin finally convinces Roland to move on to the next pen of animals. “I think the elephants are next, and you know how much Henry loves elephants.” With that, the little boy perks up, causing Regina and Robin to share an amused look with one another. “I bet we could get a great picture of them to show him when he gets back.”

“Okay, Papa! Let’s go!” Taking his and Regina’s hands, they make their way to the elephants, swinging Roland’s legs into the air as they go.

After several hours, multiple animal enclosures and, of course, another elongated stop at the monkeys, the three of them make their way to the gift shop. Regina knows how much Henry loves any and all animals and wanted to get something for when he gets back from camp.

Since Robin paid for breakfast, Regina insists that she buy Roland the gray, stuffed monkey at the gift shop that he can’t stop eyeing. She’s already getting Henry a stuffed elephant, so she reasons that since she is already buying something, it just made sense for her to get the monkey, too.

“The line is long, and we wouldn’t want to waste their time with two purchases when they could just ring it up as one, darling,” Regina teases with a smirk and the raise of one eyebrow, throwing his paraphrased words from the diner back in his face.

Chuckling, he wraps his arm around Regina’s shoulders and agrees. Kissing her cheek, he bends down to hoist Roland up on his other side as the boy snuggles into the plush, stuffed animal as they wait in line.

After purchasing the toys for her two favorite boys, they make their way back to Robin’s car. As they near the car, Regina’s phone rings. 

“Roland, it’s Henry!” she tells him, now nestled into her arms. The afternoon of excitement and warm summer sun had worn him out, and he was beginning to get sleepy (not that he would ever admit it).

Placing him in his car seat so he could buckle himself up, Regina put her phone on speaker so Roland could talk to her son. His admission this morning at the diner had brought tears to her eyes, which she tried to blink away before either Robin or Roland had seen them. She loves Robin and Roland, more than she ever thought possible, and knowing Roland loves Henry, too, made it all just seem right. It brought a joy to her heart that she hadn’t felt for a very long time - if ever.

“Hi, Henry!” Roland shrieks.

“Hey, Ro! Mom, Robin.”

Smiling at Roland’s attempt to buckle himself in while being so excited, she reaches over and flips one of his straps so it’s facing the correct direction before saying, “How are you, sweetheart?”

Sighing happily, Henry tells them he is really good, that camp is awesome. He tells her he had his favorite writing class this morning, and they wrote about fairy tales. “Fairy tales, of all things, Mom!” Henry exclaims, making she and Robin chuckle quietly. “I was so excited!”

Buckling her own seat belt, Regina smiles over to Robin who is listening to Henry’s recalling of his class with a smile of his own. Henry’s been at camp for a week and almost every time he’s called, Robin and Roland have been there, so they’re all caught up on the news about his summer adventure. There have been a few times, though, that she’s been able to go into a quiet room by herself and talk to her son, which she’s loved. Those private conversations were the times that Henry would admit he was having a great time, wants to do this every year, but he misses her a lot. She, of course, would try to keep her emotions at bay as she told him over and over again how much she missed him, too.

“That’s fantastic,” Robin says when Henry tells them he got to create his own hero and villain for his story. “Sounds like that class is a lot of fun.”

As Robin drives down the street, headed toward Regina’s apartment, Henry tells them more about camp. Says after writing class, they had lunch, which he just finished, and then he was going horseback riding.

“Oh, and I met this really nice guy the other day named Merlin. He’s into fairy tales, too, so we decided we’ll sit together in class for the rest of the time we’re here.”

She tells Henry that it sounds like he’s already had an exciting day. She’s glad, her son deserves this. He loves to write, and this camp will help foster that talent in ways she could never do at home.

They talk to Henry the whole ride home, while Roland chimes in from the backseat telling Henry more about their zoo trip.

“I wish you could have been here!” Roland tells him, causing Robin and Regina to catch each other’s gazes and smile. She loves how much Roland admires her son.

Henry laughs and says they will all have to go again sometime when he gets back.

“I’ll be home in a week, so we can go before school starts back!”

With Roland’s excited  _ yeah! _ from the backseat, Henry tells them he has to go; his riding lesson starts in a few minutes, and him and Merlin want to get there first to pick out the best horses.

“Alright, sweetheart,” Regina says, leaning her head against the headrest and taking Robin’s free hand in hers, “Well I’m glad you’re having fun. Call me tomorrow.”

“I will, Mom. Love you.”

Smiling brightly, she tells him she loves him too, and they hang up.

The three of them continue their drive back to her apartment so Regina can pack a bag to stay with the boys for a few nights, exhausted but happy. Regina hasn’t been to the zoo in a few years and tells Robin they need to take the boys when Henry is home now that Roland has already promised it. Chuckling, Robin agrees, saying it’ll be fun for the four of them to go someday soon.

The rest of the drive is made mostly in comfortable silence save for the radio playing softly in the background as Roland continues to mumble quotes from the movie playing in his headphones. He’s been watching this one on repeat for the last few weeks but claims he still loves to watch it in the car.

Glancing up from her phone where she’d been going through her pictures from today and posting to her Instagram, she notices Robin keeps looking her way.

His arm is resting on the middle console while his hand rests on his leg. Reaching over, she slides her fingers in between his and brings his hand to rest with hers on her own leg. 

He looks over, smiling softly at her, and says, “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” she tells him, before adding, “Today was fun.”

He hums, saying it was, before they fall back into a peaceful quietness. She sighs as she closes her eyes for a quick moment, thinking the sun seems to have worn her out just as much as Roland; the boy might not be the only one taking a nap today.

Coming to the next red light, she peeks over and sees Robin staring. Once their eyes connect, his gaze seems to deepen, causing her to feel self-conscious. She knows they all got sweaty outside today, so she’s positive she is a mess right now.

Tucking her hair behind her ear, she tilts her head down slightly before questioning, “What is it?”

He sighs, leaning over to peck her cheek before glancing at the light. Still red. He looks back at her and says, “You just ever feel like you were born to gaze into someone’s eyes?”

Her breath hitches in her throat as she stares back at him lovingly before she shakes her head with a good natured chuckle falling from her lips. His words warm her insides, despite how cheesy she thinks he’s being, because yes, she knows the feeling. Feels that way every time he looks at her with those crystal blue eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, Romeo,” she says, pointing toward the light, “All that sun must’ve gotten to you today. Watch the road.”

He chuckles, turning his head to face the light once again, just in time for it to turn green.

She smiles, gives his hand that still rests on her lap a little squeeze before adding quietly, “And yes, I do feel that way, blue eyes.”

He smiles brightly over at her then briefly, before mumbling a  _ knew it _ to himself which earns him a playful slap to his bicep. 

Laughing along with him, Regina settles back into her seat, letting the music and Roland’s background chatter soothe her.

Roland falls asleep in the car, so when Robin parks, Regina gently unbuckles him from his seat and carries him into her apartment building with Robin walking next to her, his hand on the small of her back.

“We can lay him down in Henry’s bed for a little bit while I pack my bag,” Regina says softly as they make their way to the lobby’s elevator.

“Sounds good, babe.” Robin slings Roland’s backpack over one shoulder and places his hand on the small of Regina’s back again. He likes to be prepared, especially with as messy as a five year old boy can get, so he usually keeps a small bag in his car with an extra pair (or two) of clothes and underwear along with a pack of baby wipes. Once Regina suggested the other week that he keep some snacks in there, in case they ever find themselves somewhere when a snack is needed, he put a pack of crackers and a squeeze pouch of apple sauce inside of it, too.

As they make their way from the elevator to her front door, her steps falter, and Robin grasps her waist at what they see there.

Daniel.

“What are you doing here?” Robin asks, gritting his teeth and trying to keep his voice low, as not to wake up Roland, and pulling Regina closer to his body.

Holding up his hands in surrender and moving to the side so Regina can open the door, he tells them he’s not there to hurt her, he just wants to talk.

Glancing over her shoulder and the top of Roland’s head to Robin, she nods, letting him know they should let Daniel inside. Maybe he’s actually here to explain himself.

Once inside, Regina carefully hands a sleeping Roland over the Robin.

“You can lay him down; it’s okay.” She can tell Robin is apprehensive about leaving her in the living room with Daniel, but she gives him a small, reassuring smile, telling him again that it’ll be fine.

He sighs but kisses her cheek, pulling back and shooting Daniel with lasers from his eyes as he turns to walk down the hall with Roland.

Turning to face Daniel, she wipes her suddenly clammy hands on her jeans.

“What are you doing here, Daniel?” She’s not angry, just curious. He looks better than he did a week ago when he assaulted her, he doesn’t have that crazy glint in his eyes, he seems almost… remorseful.

“Regina,” he starts, moving closer to her, as she takes a step back and holds up a hand. They’ve moved into the space between the living room and kitchen. It’s neutral, no furniture to be pushed against and doesn’t seem like she’s inviting him to sit down on the couch for a chat. Thank God for open living spaces, she muses to herself sullenly.

Sighing, he looks down at his feet. “I’m sorry, Regina. I’m  _ so _ sorry,” he chokes out. He’s not sobbing, but he’s definitely affected by the emotion of what he did to her. “I never meant to hurt you. You know I would never do anything to hurt you.”

“But you did,” she tells him as Robin makes his way back into the living room area. She looks over at him, trying to tell him with her eyes that she’s okay. He seems to get the message because he nods and walks into the kitchen, standing behind the island, where he can keep an eye on what’s happening without actually being in their space.

“I know. And I’ll never be able to forgive myself for how I acted,” Daniel says with a pinched brow, looking up into her eyes again.

She can see the tears brimming in his and knows that his apology is actually sincere.

“You hurt me, Daniel,” she tells him, her voice wavering a little.

It’s with those words, that the brimming tears drop onto his cheek and he drops his head again. Her eyes fill with tears, too, remembering back to that night and how scared she had felt.

“I know. I know what I did was wrong, Regina, and all I can say is that I’m so very, deeply, sorry.” Shaking his head, he continues telling her he never wants her to feel scared like that again, at the hands of anyone, let alone him.

“I’m going away for a few months,” he tells her, which causes her brow to furrow. She glances over Daniel’s shoulder to Robin in the kitchen, and he shrugs his shoulders, giving her a reassuring smile.

“What do you mean?”

“My family has that lake house, you know?” And she does. It’s a lake house in Maine that his family has owned for years. They used to spend summers up there before Henry was born and a few times when he was younger.

“In Maine?”

“Yeah.” He nods, stuffing a hand into his pocket and rocking back on the balls of his feet. “My mom said no one is going to be there throughout the summer, so I’m going to go, clear my head and get myself right. There’s a therapist up there that my aunt goes to. I’ve got an appointment with him in a few days, and hopefully I can set up regular meetings while I’m there.” Running his free hand through his hair, he sighs and apologizes again, saying, “Hopefully Dr. Hopper can help me work on whatever caused me to act like that with you.”

Surprised, because Daniel used to claim no one should need a therapist, but impressed, Regina lets out a breath she didn’t even know she had been holding. Tilting her head, she says, “I think that’s a great idea, Daniel. It’ll be good for you to talk to someone about things.”

“Yeah.” He sighs, looking at her again and sheepishly smiling, almost a grimace. “I really am sorry.”

“I know,” she tells him, nodding. Because she does. She spent twelve years with this man, she knows what he did was out of character, and she’s seen him regret several decisions over the years. So she knows what his regret and honest apologies look like.

Daniel turns to face Robin, and walking toward him, says, “I know she’s really happy with you, man. Please just... take care of her,” sticking his hand out for a shake. Robin looks at Regina, who smiles warmly at him, nodding her head.

Once Robin receives that silent communication from Regina, he looks to Daniel, and shakes his hand.

“Of course. I plan to, for as long as she’ll keep me around.” Both men smirk, causing her to roll her eyes as she makes her way into the kitchen to stand next to Robin, wrapping an arm around his torso.

“Thank you,” Daniel says, reaching into his pocket. He pulls out a small piece of paper and hands it to her. At her questioning gaze, he explains, “It’s the landline number up at the lake house. Figured you didn’t still have it written down from years ago.”

She smiles, placing the paper on the kitchen counter and running her hand over it, thanking him. Daniel nods and gives her a  _ you’re welcome _ as he turns to walk toward the front door.

Regina follows him, saying she’ll give Henry the number in case his cell doesn’t have good service up there. 

“Just… take care of yourself, Daniel,” she tells him, opening the door as he walks out.

Turning around to smile sadly at her one last time, he assures her he will and tells her that he’ll see her in a few months. He says to take care of Henry and he’ll see him when he gets back, hopefully with a much clearer mind.

And with that, Daniel leaves, leaving Regina completely dumbfounded.

Closing the door, she joins Robin on the couch; he’d walked over there and propped his feet up on the coffee table while she said goodbye to Daniel at the door. Laying her head in his lap and stretching her legs the length of the couch, she sighs. His fingers begin to rub through her hair, relaxing her whole body.

They’re quiet for a few minutes before Robin speaks up. “You alright, love?”

“Yeah,” she breathes out, “I think it’ll be good for him to get up there and talk with Dr. Hopper. Help him figure things out.” She shrugs a shoulder up. “I’m glad he apologized, though.”

“Yeah, me too.”

Sitting up, Regina gazes into his eyes. There’s nothing but love for her shining in them, and she feels safe, happy, and loved. She’s content.

“What is it?” he asks, eyebrows creasing in confusion at her sudden movement.

Sighing, she leans closer, pecking his lips before saying, “Nothing. I’m just trying to memorize you like this.”

“Like what?” he chuckles with a crease of his eyebrows and a smile on his lips, “With apprehension and protectiveness written all over my face?”

She lets a breathy laugh escape her lips as she leans into his side saying, “No, with love in your eyes.”

“Ah,” he says, kissing the top of her head. “Well that’s easy to do when I’m looking at you.”

Never one for overly sappy moments, partially not believing she initiated the cheesiness for once, Regina rolls her eyes with a grin on her face. She uses her hand to push herself up from his side so she is once again sitting next to him.

Smiling, she moves to sit across his lap. He wraps his arms around her while she rests her head in the crook of his neck, breathing him in. He still smells like sweat from being outside at the zoo all day, but she assumes she does, too.

“You stink,” she mumbles, smirking into his neck. Laughter bubbles out of him, causing her to laugh too.

“You don’t smell so great, yourself there, darling.”

Laughing, they sit there, her off his lap now with her legs draped over his thighs, but still wrapped up in each other’s arms while  _ Beach Front Bargain Hunt _ plays softly on the television and Robin lightly massages his calves. They doze in and out of napping, him commenting how people are overpaying for beach property on this show. They stay like that for the next hour, completely comfortable.

{*****************************}

While Roland napped in Henry’s room, Robin finally pulled himself from his and Regina’s nap and ran home to grab some pajamas and a change of clothes for him and his son. They decided they were far too tired to go  _ back _ to his apartment. Plus, Robin reasoned with himself (and her) that she slept at his place last night, and her apartment was closer to his office anyway. It just made sense. 

He also knew she was mentally exhausted from everything with Daniel, along with physically exhausted, and he didn’t want her to have to worry with packing a bag and everything that entailed.

When he gets back to Regina’s apartment, he’s greeted by the sight of his son curled up in Regina’s lap, as she softly sings to him and rubs his back.

“He just woke up a few minutes ago,” she tells him as he walks into the living room, kissing the top of her damp, curly hair that she’d pulled into a bun. She tells him that while he was out grabbing clothes, she had hopped in the shower, claiming she could no longer sit there and stink when she had a wonderful shower just waiting to be used.

He  _ ahh’s _ in response as he walks down the short hallway to drop his and Roland’s clothes off in the bedrooms. He also brought some of Roland’s toys, just in case he gets bored at some point tonight with the “big boy toys” and wants something of his own to play with.

“I can’t say I blame you,” he smirks, walking back into the living room and joining them on the couch, “you do have a bloody fantastic shower.”

She giggles, leaning over to kiss his lips, saying, “Well feel free to use it, too. Although…” she eyes him skeptically, narrowing her eyes are they roam over his body.

He laughs, telling her, “I just couldn’t take the zoo smell any longer either, love. I had to shower while I was at home.”

She sighs peacefully as he slips his arm around her and she leans into his side.

“This one needs a bath next, though,” he says, tickling Roland’s sides.

Amongst Roland’s fits of giggles, he tells them both that he brought Roland’s favorite Iron Man body wash from the apartment.

Roland  _ woo-hoo _ ’s as he hops up, running off to the bathroom, hollering down the hallway for Robin to hurry up.

The rest of the night passes peacefully. There’s a calm about this relationship that he appreciates and loves. Everything feels natural and domestic, nothing is forced or fake. It’s the greatest relationship he’s been in, along, of course, with his marriage to Marian.

After everyone’s been cleaned of all the sweat and zoo smell, they get into their pajamas, despite it still being early in the evening. Once Regina brushes through Roland’s damp curls, she makes her way into the kitchen to help Robin make chicken alfredo while his son plays in the living room. He’s currently flying his new stuffed monkey around, crashing into Henry’s stuffed elephant, muttering words like  _ take that! _ and  _ aha! nowhere to hide now Mr. Trunks! _ causing both adults to giggle under their breath at the cute imagination of the small boy.

“Need any help?” she asks, walking up behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist.

“Mmm,” he hums, “Can you stir the noodles a bit?”

She moves from behind him to stand next to him, picking up the wooden spoon and stirring the noodles around in the pot.

He moves to stand behind her, wrapping his arms around her middle and nuzzling his nose into her neck.

Giggling, she says, “I thought you needed  _ help.  _ You’re not doing much.”

He laughs, saying he can’t help it; he prefers kissing over cooking.

She lays the spoon down and turns in his arms, wrapping hers around his neck.

“You’re right.” She smiles up at him, “Kissing is much better.”

He leans down and places a few innocent kisses to her forehead, lips, and neck while gently swaying them back and forth. She buries her head into the crook of his shoulder and lets out a sighed breath.

“Something wrong?” he asks, pulling away slightly to look in her eyes.

“No, no,” she laughs, shaking her head and smiling, “I’m just so relaxed.”

Blowing out a breath of relief, worried she was still upset over Daniel, he tells her he’s relaxed too and that he had a lot of fun today at the zoo.

“Yeah,” she agrees, wrapping her arms around his neck once more, “it was a lot more fun than I remember.”

Standing up on her tiptoes, she places a kiss to his lips, deepening the kiss as she presses more into his body.

He moans into her mouth, sneaking his tongue out to trace her lips. She opens her mouth, letting his tongue join hers in her mouth. His hand wraps into her still damp hair, tugging on the base of her neck, pulling her closer to him. She moans quietly, rubbing her hands along his biceps. It’s not until the water the noodles are in begins to boil over that they pull apart, giggling to themselves.

As Regina spins to turn the heat down on the stove, Robin turns to glance over at his son, making sure he didn’t just catch them in an unplanned snogging session. Luckily, Roland is still occupied with his toys, crashing his flying monkey onto not just the elephant but also the toy cars. Laughing at his son’s oblivion, Robin stands next to Regina, stirring the sauce a bit, smirking over at her flushed cheeks.

“Shut up,” she mutters playfully, elbowing him in the ribs.

Laughing, he kisses the side of her head and whispers, “I love you.”

When dinner is finished, cleaned up, and leftovers are deposited into the refrigerator, the three of them turn on  _ Finding Dory _ . She tells them that Henry always loved  _ Finding Nemo _ growing up, so she was glad when this one made its way onto Netflix, which causes Roland to tell her how he loves  _ Finding Nemo and Dory _ both, making him smile. It’s true, though. Roland wasn’t born when the first movie came out, but has seen it several  _ hundred _ times over the last five years. And now the second one has also been added to his favorite movie list, so it, too, has played over and over and over again in the most recent months.

Roland is cuddled up in some blankets atop her living room rug, snuggling with his new stuffed monkey and a throw pillow, while he and Regina snuggle under a blanket together on her couch.

It’s summer, and very hot outside, but her air conditioner works great, and with their damp hair and cool air, a blanket is perfect to keep them warm. It’s quiet and cozy. The only sound to be heard is the stingrays on screen singing their song as they swim by the other fish. He’s relaxed and thinks he could fall asleep, if it weren’t for Regina’s wandering hand under that blanket.

_ Minx,  _ he thinks to himself, a smirk playing on his lips. Her hand is rubbing up and down right above his knee. She’s obviously keeping it clean since his son is just a few feet away, but, he surmises, he is quite engrossed in the movie. Shifting his body slightly so he’s sitting up a little bit, he pulls Regina up with him so he can reach her mouth. Leaning down, he places a soft kiss to his lips that she smiles into.

“Watch the movie,” she whispers onto his lips.

Grinning, he pulls back slightly to stare at her incredulously, “You started it,” running his hands through her hair and kissing her neck.

“And I’ll finish it, too,” she smiles temptingly with a quick raise of her eyebrows, “Once the movie is over and the kid is in bed.”

All he can do is grin. 

 

{********************************}

_ Reviews make authors happy… just sayin’ ;) lol _

 


	10. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back already! Lol This was originally going to all be part of chapter 9, but then I realized it was hella long and my lovely betas suggested splitting it into two parts. So, yay! An extra chapter! Haha…Make sure you’ve read chapter 9 so you know where this one picks up.
> 
> Enjoy and please leave a review to let me know what you think :)  
> {************************}

The next morning, Regina wakes completely sated from their post-movie activities. Stretching slightly, she turns to peek at the clock on her cell phone, seeing it’s just a few minutes before her alarm is set to go off at seven.

Groaning, she cancels the alarm and rolls to the edge of the bed and stands. She needs to get going if she wants to get any work done this morning. She’s finishing Robin’s office today and wants to surprise him with it by the end of the work day. That, however, requires her getting to her office early so she can get some work done on her other projects before spending the rest of her time at his offices with Mary Margaret and Marco.

She’s already told Robin he, and the rest of his employees, are not allowed inside the building today, so as the boss, Robin gave everyone the day off from work, which was just fine with his employees.

Before she can walk toward her bathroom, Robin’s hand is on her forearm, pulling her back into bed with him and wrapping his arms around her.

“Stay a few more minutes,” he begs sleepily, nuzzling her cheek before planting several small pecks to her neck.

“I can’t.” She smiles, pressing her body closer to his, “I have to shower and go into the office early. I have this terribly stubborn client whose offices I’m redoing – finishing today, actually – but I’m on a time crunch.”

“He sounds terribly insufferable,” he mumbles into her hair.

Chuckling, she tells him, “He’s not so bad; gives pretty good kisses, anyway.” With that, she rolls over, straddling him and placing a row of kisses along his jaw.

“Oh, really?” he jests, fully awake now. Rolling them over so he’s hovering above her, he kisses down her neck and into the valley between her breasts.

As his hands begin to roam down her sides, headed toward the part of her that desperately wants his touch, she huffs, telling him she really does need to shower so she can go to work.

“I don’t get the day off like someone else.” Grinning, she wriggles from underneath him and starts walking toward the bathroom, stripping her yoga pants and t-shirt off as she goes, tossing them back to him on the bed.

“You could always join me for a  _ quick _ shower,” she says with a gravelly voice and winks (kind of).

He jumps out of bed with that statement, chasing her into the bathroom, as she giggles the whole way.

{**************************}

Regina is finally finished with his office space, and she’s been working hard today to put the finishing touches on it so she could reveal it to Robin tonight.

Luckily, since it’s summer break, he was able to spend the day with Roland while Regina and her employees worked at his office. When she called earlier to let him know she was finished, he dropped Roland off with Tink and headed for his building.

He calls her when he gets to the downstairs lobby, telling her that he’s arrived.

“Okay, I’m coming,” she says to him, reminding him that she wants it all to be a surprise.

“Well, don’t come without me,” he replies cheekily, earning a  _ Robinnn _ from the other side of the phone.

“Be serious,” she chuckles, saying she’ll be down in a second.

As they make their way out of the elevator and onto the twenty third floor a few minutes later, she says, “Are your eyes closed?”

“Baby, you have me blindfolded, of course I can’t see.” He smirks, shaking his head.

When the elevator opens, she walks him down the long hallway, straight to his office. She tells him she wants him to see his office first, then he can go look at the other rooms. Truthfully, he’s been working through her renovation so he’s seen most of the new changes, but she’s excited to reveal this to him, promising that things have changed since he was here on Friday.

Feeding off her excitement, he smiles as she pulls off his blindfold, crying, “Okay! Open!”

He blinks a few times and then looks around, stunned at the transformation. True, he’s seen all the furniture and most of the décor, but today they’ve rearranged most of the furniture, giving the office a better flow, added more items to the bookshelves, and moved some lamps around. She even turned the two leather chairs in the corner in a different direction, opening up the space so more people could sit and converse in that spot.

It’s amazing, and he tells her so.

“Really?” she asks, wringing her hands together and biting her lip in that way that always drives him mad for her.

Looking at her, mouth slightly agape, he reassures her, “Love, this is wonderful. It looks totally different. Tink was right to suggest you.” He wraps his arms around her then, pulling her closer and placing a kiss to the crown of her head.

Smiling up at him, she tells him she’s glad he likes it.

“I more than like it, I love it.”

Walking around and observing everything, as Regina trails behind him explaining all the changes like a giddy school girl, her hand clasped in his, he turns and says, “You know my favorite part?”

“What?” she questions with a smile on her face, lifting her eyebrows.

“My desk.” He walks them over to the glass desk, thinking back to that day at the furniture store so many months ago and having the fantasy of his head between her legs while she sat perched atop that glass table top. The thought makes him let out a breathy laugh.

“What’s so funny?” She laughs.

Rubbing his hand along the back of his neck, he kisses her lips, saying, “I was just thinking about the day we picked this desk out, and the wildly inappropriate fantasy I had about my new interior decorator.”

Grinning, she asks him what the fantasy was.

“Well, you see,” he stumbles on his words, noting that she’s slowly undoing the buttons of her shirt, while giving him the most seductive look he’s ever seen. “I envisioned tossing you on top of that desk.” He slides her skirt down her hips as she steps out of it and tosses her blouse behind her. “Me falling to my knees and,” he lifts her up, causing her to gasp, placing her atop his desk, “eating you out until you came all over my tongue.” She moans then, rubbing her hands up and down his biceps.

Now consciously noticing she wasn’t wearing any under garments, he cheekily grins at her as his eyes roam over her naked form. “Miss Mills, did you plan on this happening?” he questions, running one hand down the center of her breasts, down to ghost over her sex, and bringing it back up to thumb over her nipple. His other hand finds purchase on her hip, grasping it slightly to keep her in place.

“Maybe,” she grins, scooting her body closer to the edge of the desk. “Let’s test that theory out. Get on your knees, Mr. Locksley.”

Growling, he sinks to his knees. She’s not normally this demanding, but in this moment he loves it. It’s sexy and hot, and he’s all riled up because of it. His fingers instantly sink into her middle, causing her to gasp and moan. They’re all alone in this building, and they both know it. Robin’s office is on the twenty-third floor, and the two floors below him are vacant lots anyway. He can make her scream as loud as she wants, and no one will ever hear.

Spreading her legs further apart, he plants light kisses to her inner thighs.

“ _ Yes, _ Robin,” she hisses, running her fingers through his hair, while her other hand reaches up to play with her tits.

Looking up at her, he’s mesmerized. He’s never seen a more beautiful sight. Suddenly, light kisses aren’t enough. Sliding his two fingers down, deeper into her, his mouth grabs onto her clit, sucking.

She tastes wonderful, and the only way he can tell her is by moaning into her, causing her breaths to deepen. She’s panting, but he wants her to yell his name for him.

“No holding back, love,” he tells her. “There’s no one here but us. I want you to scream.”

Inserting a third finger and sucking harder at her clit seems to do the trick. With that extra finger inside her, she falls back, propping herself up on her elbows so she can continue working on her nipples.

His hands are grasping her thighs, making sure she doesn’t fall off the desk. He’s moaning into her sex more now, completely turned on by the sight of her groaning for him, grinding her sex into his mouth.

She’s begging for more, for it to be harder. He moves his fingers in and out of her dripping, wet center, while his tongue laps up her juices. He’s back to her clit, sucking hard as she grasps his head and pushes him further into her.

“I’m close, Robin, don’t – mmm – stop!” she shouts. This is the loudest he’s ever heard her, and it sounds glorious, amazing. Each moan, gasp, and scream goes straight to his cock. He loves her voice, whether it’s her normal, every day voice or her more sultry, gravelly voice she uses in the bedroom. Right now it’s the ladder, and hearing the rasp in her voice as she pants and screams without inhibition does things to his body. He is painfully hard now, but, god, he will finish her off like this first even if it kills him. He loves being between her thighs, and he knows she loves it, too.

Moving his lips away from her slightly, letting his thumb rub circles over where his mouth just left, he tells her, “I won’t, baby.”

Moving his mouth back to her clit, he sucks and sucks, knowing she’s close. It’s with one final insert of his three digits and a particularly good suck that Regina loses all her senses, letting go of her nipples and falling back onto the desk, screaming Robin’s name as she comes on his tongue.

He licks her clean as best he can before standing to hover over her, running his hands along her sides.

“That was incredible,” she tells him, trying to catch her breath.

He smirks, bringing a hand up to push a strand of hair away from her forehead. She’s gorgeous, and he spends a quick moment staring into her eyes. Her chocolate brown ones gazing back into his lovingly. She sighs and smiles sweetly up at him, the post-orgasm haze making her eyes hooded as they look up at him. Robin leans down, pecking a kiss to her lips before he reaches out a hand to take hers.

She accepts his hand and stands, and he wraps his arms around her naked frame.

He agrees with her, then leans in, placing another kiss to her lips.

“You know,” she says as she begins pulling his shirt over his head, “You’re not the only one who had a fantasy that day about this desk.” Cocking one eyebrow up, she begins removing his belt once his shirt has been discarded behind them.

Dropping his pants and boxers to the ground, he stands bare in front of her, ass cheeks facing the window. Good thing they’re on the top floor. “Oh, really?” he asks, smirking.

“Mmhmm.” She glides her hands along his torso, causing the muscles in his stomach to contract. “I imagined you fucking me right here on this desk.”

She sits back on the table top, pulling him by his shoulders to be closer to her. He stands in between her legs, his hands on either side of her hips as her legs wrap around him. Kissing her deeply and moaning into her mouth as her hands grip his bum, pulling him even closer.

“But what if there’s a weight limit?” she asks suddenly, nervously looking up into his blue eyes.

Laughing, he slides her off the desk saying, “Well, let’s not test our luck.” Pulling her down to the ground under the desk, “If we can’t have sex  _ on _ the desk, we might as well try  _ under _ it.”

“Works for me.” She grins, moving so she’s under the glass surface and pulling him on top of her.

Running his hands down her sides, he dips a finger inside of her to make sure she’s still wet enough.

Smiling up at him, she says, “It’s okay. I’m ready.”

Nodding, he kisses her again. Her tongue runs along the seam of his lips, seeking entrance. He knows she can taste herself on his tongue, and he’s highly turned on by the thought that she likes the taste of them mixed together. He certainly does.

“Do you like the way you taste, baby?” he pants, kissing her again.

_ Mmm, _ she hums, “I  _ love _ the way I taste on your tongue. So sexy.” She kisses him again, harder this time. “Only you can make me come like that.”

Well, then. Mystery solved.

With his growled  _ oh, fuck, Regina,  _ she reaches down and takes him in her hand, pumping his cock up and down.

“Condom,” he sighs, reaching for his wallet in his pant pocket. Luckily his pants were right next to them, so he didn’t have to leave the glorious hold she has on his member.

Slipping it on, and kissing her once again, he lines himself up with her entrance. Regina is already whimpering for him to get inside of her, as her hands roam all over his body. He rubs the tip at her entrance, teasing her, riling her up even more. Panting short breaths, she takes matters into her own hands, thrusting her hips up a notch, causing him to sink a little further into her.

Moaning a  _ shit, yes _ , he slides all the way in, taking his time to enjoy the feel of her, wet and hot, surrounding him. One hand is propping himself up, so his other hand begins to run along her side, up to her neck and jaw, and back down again.

After a few thrusts, Regina takes his hand and guides him toward her clit. He gets the hint. With his thumb circling her bundle of nerves, and his thrusts increasing, she’s almost a goner. Again. His ability to make her come over and over again will never cease to amaze him.

He wants to make her scream, though, even louder that she did just a few minutes ago atop his desk.

“Yes, Regina,” he moans, asking her what she needs.

“Harder,” she breathes, wrapping both legs around his waist and grinding her hips into him, causing his own moan to come out louder than  _ he’s _ ever heard it. She’s a passionate lover, and he doesn’t think he’ll ever tire of their powerful love making.

He pounds harder into her, lowering his head to suck on her nipple, making her scream  _ Fuck, Robin! _ He smugly smirks when he looks up to see she’s grasped onto that wrought iron “X” that the desk legs make, grasping it so hard her knuckles are turning white.

She’s screaming then, writhing beneath him, telling him she’s close and needs more. Harder. Faster. 

With that, he presses his thumb harder onto her clit, rubbing deep circles. She’s moving her hips every which way, and gripping his hair with one hand, pulling him closer to her, while the other still grasps the iron “X” to keep her grounded. He thinks if they got any closer, they’d be one body. He’s going to come soon, his cock is throbbing with a need to explode as he pounds into her, but he knows she’s close to another orgasm and wants her to finish first.

She shouts another  _ fuck, Robin, yes! _ , causing him to almost lose it. He never knew she could sound like this, but he’s damn well determined to make her scream like this again and again.

“Come for me, love, let go. I’ll go with you,” he whispers into her ear, pulling his cock out slightly and slamming it back inside of her. He takes her hand from the “X” and laces their fingers together, holding her hands in place on either side of her head as he thrusts into her again.

She screams his name, squeezing his hands, still laced with hers, then moving one hand out of their grip to run up and down his back. Her legs are already wrapped around him, but he feels them grip him even harder as she comes around his shaft, shouting his name. After two more hard thrusts, he’s joining her, shouting her name into the empty office space, their cries of passion echoing throughout the office walls as he spills his seed into the condom.

Spent, sweaty and completely satisfied, he rolls off of her, lying beside her under the desk. Her hand is no longer gripping the desk legs, but is rubbing a circle pattern on her own stomach, a small smile on her lips.

Turning onto his side, he drapes one arm over her stomach, while he rests his head in the palm of the other.

“Hey,” he whispers, suddenly feeling as if they need to keep quiet so not to break this sex bubble they’ve created.

Turning her head to look at him, she smiles warmly up at him. He loves that bright, beautiful smile. “Hey” she replies back, the haze of their lovemaking slowly fading from her eyes.

“I love you,” he tells her, leaning down to kiss those plump lips of hers. They’re slightly swollen now from how hard he’d kissed them, and he loves it. He’s positive his are just as swollen from her sucking on them.

“Good,” she smirks before adding, “because I love you, too.”

He rolls a bit, adjusting his back so he can look more fully into her eyes and feels something underneath him. Reaching underneath his side, he pulls out the blindfold she had used earlier, and he smirks, looking over at her.

“You know,” he says as she turns her head to eye the blindfold, “I thought about using this on you.”

Letting out a breathy laugh, she says, “Why didn’t you?”

He tells her he wanted to be able to look into her eyes as he made her come that hard, but since her eyes were slammed shut anyway, he should’ve just used it.

Laughing and swatting his bare shoulder, she says it would’ve been sexy and, “maybe another time.”

“Definitely.” He places a kiss to her shoulder, then her neck, before nipping at the skin there quickly.

They lay there for a few more minutes, completely silent, hands roaming each other’s bodies softly as they listen to the melody of car horns driving passed down below. After a few kisses, he speaks up. “Let’s get dressed and head home after I check out the other offices, hm?”

“Sounds good. Your place or mine?”

He smiles, leans down for one more kiss and tells her to pick.

They get dressed and let him explore the other offices on his floor, which he loves completely. Compliments each one as they go, making her beam with pride. After each room and hallway has been viewed and gushed over, they make their way to their cars to go pick up clothes at Regina’s apartment and head to his place. Roland is there with Tink so it’s just easier to sleep there for tonight. They’ve got dinner plans with Neal and Emma tomorrow and the restaurant is closer to his apartment anyway.

Later that night, Regina climbs into his bed, her hair still damp from her shower, making her curls come out. He loves her curls, thinks they’re sexy in fact. She told him before that she hated them growing up, but now she doesn’t mind them so much.

As he wraps his arms around her, he tells her how amazing his offices are one more time. “I love them, truly. Thank you, darling.”

She curls into his body, telling him she’s glad he hired her, pressing a kiss into his lips, and he can’t help but fall even deeper in love with her.

{************************)

“Roland, you can bring one toy to the restaurant and no more,” Robin tells his son, who is currently holding a toy in each hand and has one stuffed under both armpits. He’s arguing, as best as a pouty five year old can, that the cars under his arms are needed for his Gekko and Owlette so they can ride in them at dinner. Roland’s latest television obsession has been PJ Mask, and even though Catboy is the favorite among his friends at school, he’s always been partial to Gekko, claiming  _ he’s green! My favorite color! _

Watching the argument from the doorway, Regina continues putting on her jewelry. She had been in the bedroom when Roland’s tantrum started so she figured she’d come out and see what the fuss was all about. 

Rolling his eyes while slipping his shoes on, Robin tells him one more time, a bit more sternly, that he can bring  _ one. _

Before the tantrum can go any further, Regina walks over to where her boys are standing, fixing the bracelet around her wrist and saying sweetly but firmly, “Roland, sweetheart, there’s only going to be room for one toy at the table.”

“Okay, Gina!” He agrees without hesitation, earning an exasperated head shake from Regina. Roland smiles his sweetest smile, running to the corner of the living room where his toys are kept neatly on a shelf and placing both cars and Owlette back. “I’ll just take Gekko.”

Looking to Robin, who is huffing and running a hand through his hair, she walks over to him. He’s made his way into the kitchen and is standing behind the island, watching his son do exactly as Regina had said without argument. Feeling a stab of guilt that he may be upset that Roland followed her directions and not his, she lets out a huff of a laugh and wraps her arms around his waist from behind him. “Kids,” she mutters, placing a kiss to his shoulder blade.

“Yeah.”

Turning around, he looks down at his and places a kiss to her forehead. “Come on. We’re going to be late.”

After the search for Roland’s shoes is complete, the three of them make their way down to Robin’s car.

Robin has been decidedly more quiet than usual tonight, even before Roland’s tantrum over the toys, and he’s barely said two words in the car. Maybe something happened at work, but usually he tells her these things, so she’s not quite sure what the issue is.

Not wanting to upset him before dinner with their friends, Regina just reaches over and takes his hand, bringing it to her lips to press a kiss to his knuckles. 

He looks over at her then, giving her hand a gentle squeeze and telling her he loves her. 

“I love you, too,” she whispers back before looking back at Roland. He’s currently enthralled with whatever adventure he’s taken Gekko on and has the green action figure flying through the air. Smiling back at him, she turns her attention back to Robin.

“I’m glad Emma and Neal could come tonight.”

He hums and nods in agreement, giving her nothing more than that, seemingly lost in his thoughts. Taking his hand to rest it with hers on the middle console, she picks up her phone and browses her Instagram feed until they arrive at the restaurant. 

Walking inside, Regina sees that Emma and Neal are already there. The two of them have been dating for only a week, but have spent time together every single day. Her best friend is infatuated, and Regina finds it adorable. She’s never seen Emma so happy before.

Pulling her best friend into a hug, while Robin and Neal give the manliest hug they can to each other, Regina says, “It’s good to see you.”

The girls have not spent as much time together lately, with work and relationships taking up so much time, but they’ve been able to spend a few moments together here and there. 

Just then the hostess walks over to them, letting them know their table is ready. Taking Roland’s hand, while Gekko flies in his other one, the five of them make their way to be seated.

The restaurant is nice and kid friendly which helps keep Roland entertained while the four adults talk. There are a few televisions around the room they’ve been seated in, and even though they are muted, he still has something to watch when he gets bored with his toy. The tablecloths are also made of paper, specifically for kids to draw on and keep busy with. Roland is currently drawing a picture of him, Gekko and Henry saving the world when Neal asks Robin how work is going.

“It’s good.” His huffed reply is short, and Neal looks to Regina who just shrugs. Good to see she’s not the only one to notice his sour mood.

“I just finished redoing his offices and showed him the finished product last night,” Regina beams, still so proud of the work she and her team put in to that project.

“Really?” Emma asks. “That was quicker than I thought!”

Telling her it’s been a few months, but she also had her team work extra hard on it, Regina reaches over and takes Robin’s hand, giving it a little squeeze. He looks up from his menu and into her eyes, and she tries to communicate wordlessly that he’s being rude to their friends. He’s barely spoken a handful of words this whole time, and it’s starting to annoy her. If he would just tell her what the problem is, she could help fix it. Regina’s always been a fixer, always wanting to help her friends and family out when they were having a hard time and give advice that might make them feel better. She gets frustrated when someone she loves won’t open up and let her in (ironic, since she’s always been an expert at keeping her walls firmly in place).

He seems to get the message, and he perks up just a bit. Smiling slightly, he says, “Yeah, they look great.” 

He goes on telling Neal and Emma how each office, while all within the same style, seem to have their own personality, and he loves it, as did his employees. He says they were shocked at the transformation today when they all walked in.

Smiling proudly, Emma says, “I had no doubt they would. Regina is amazing!”

“That she is,” Robin agrees, looking into her eyes. She stares back, searching his eyes for answers. His eyes soften a touch and his lips quirk up, giving her the faintest of smiles.

“Alright, lovebirds, not at the table,” Neal laughs, taking a sip of his water.

Laughing, the group order their food when the waitress comes back again and continue chatting about everyone’s work. Emma is a bail bondsperson so she always has interesting stories to tell, while Neal owns his own furniture store. They make classic, wooden pieces, and Regina tells him she’ll have to come by and have a look one day soon to see what she can use in some of her projects.

“Maybe Robin and I can come by one Saturday and have a look.” She looks over to an overly quiet Robin, who seems to be distracted with his phone once again, and gives his arm a soft nudge, saying, “How does that sound?”

He looks up at her, sighing a brief, “Yeah, fine.”

She thought they were making progress with that gentle look in his eyes a moment ago, but apparently not. Turning her eyes up toward the ceiling, trying not to roll her eyes at him, she looks back at Neal. If her boyfriend won’t help carry on a conversation with their friends, she can at least. “Well, I’m excited to come by, anyway! I just picked up a day care project that some of your pieces might be perfect for.”

“Yeah, awesome!” he says, looking in Robin’s direction and then back to Regina. “Just let me know when.”

After the food has been eaten, the adults decide to sit there a little bit longer and catch up. It’s been a while since everyone has seen each other, and it’s always nice to relax with friends. Granted, most of the conversation is Regina, Emma and Neal, while Robin sits there with a scowl on his face, not contributing very much to the conversation. His replies are shorter than normal and every time he puts his cup down, he seems to have to slam it down. He seems okay talking with Neal and Emma, but anytime she speaks, his replies get even shorter. He’s being rude and it’s getting under Regina’s skin, but she’s trying to ignore him and focus on their friends. She can always talk to him later when they get home.

“You guys got any plans for Fourth of July?” Neal asks, telling Regina he always has a big barbeque out at his place, and he’d love for them to come.

“Not that I know of,” Regina says, taking a sip of her Diet Coke. “Robin?”

“Yeah, no plans.”

Sighing and looking back to Neal and Emma, she says they’d love to come if he had room for all four of them since Henry would be back by then.

“For sure!” Neal says, taking a bite of the last breadstick. “There’s plenty of room.”

Nodding at his response, Regina looks down at Roland to make sure all of his food has been eaten. Seeing that it has, she tells him he did a great job eating tonight, which prompts him to ask if he can have dessert.

Emma and Neal chuckle at the boy’s enthusiasm, while Neal says he couldn’t fit a bite of dessert in him if he tried. That shrimp ravioli, plus about a dozen breadsticks, really did him in.

It’s true, she is quite full from her grilled chicken alfredo, but she knows Roland is always up for something sweet to eat. He’s had the kid’s spaghetti with meat sauce, which he’d done a surprisingly good job of not getting on his clothes, and he’d eaten every last bite. She wouldn’t think he could possibly fit anything else in his little swollen belly, but the kid loves his treats.

Reaching over to playfully squeeze his stomach, she laughs, saying, “You seem pretty full to me, baby.” Looking over at Robin, she stage whispers to Roland, “You’ll have to ask your papa.”

Turning his big, chocolate eyes upon his father, Roland says, “Please, Papa, can we have dessert?”

Regina glances to Neal and Emma who are both watching the scene unfold with smiles on their faces that match Regina’s. Roland is so cute and polite, she could never say no to those dimples (she could, knows she would if it was really something he didn’t need, but a tiny piece of cheesecake that she could take a bite or two of never hurt anyone).

“No, no dessert tonight.”

Scrunching her eyebrows together at his reply and looking down at Roland’s crestfallen face, she leans in to whisper that the waitress will bring some chocolate mints with the bill, so he’d have that at least. He sits up, whispering back  _ okay, Gina! _ and picking up his crayons to continue coloring. At least he’s still at the age where he can be easily distracted.

Ruffling his mop of curls, she looks around the table to see Emma and Neal are talking quietly to one another, Neal playing with Emma’s fingers as he leans in to murmur in her ear, and Robin has once again picked up his cell phone.

Since he doesn’t seem too interested in talking with her, Regina turns her focus onto the littlest Locksley. She picks up a crayon and starts to play tic-tac-toe on the tablecloth with him. Laughing at the way he pokes his tongue out in concentration, just like his father, Regina looks up at Robin. He’s setting his phone down, a bit harder than need be, and huffing out an irritated breath. 

Glancing at Neal and Emma, they both seem to be distracted by their phones for the moment, too, showing each other something on the other one’s screen. Typical. No one can seem to go to dinner these days without being distracted by their phones at least once during the meal. 

Emma looks over at Regina and catches her eyes, moving her eyes in Robin’s direction with a questioning look on her face, mouthing  _ what’s his problem? _ Shaking her head, Regina mouths back  _ no idea _ in Emma’s direction, accompanied by a good natured eye roll, causing her friend to silently chuckle and shake her head.

{************************}

Once the bills have been settled, the group make their way toward to parking lot.

“Well,” Neal says, clapping Robin on the shoulder, “I’m glad we could all get together tonight.”

“Yeah,” Robin agrees, “it was fun. Sorry I was a bit distracted.” He doesn’t think he’d exactly been rude tonight with their friends, most times he looked up from his phone, they were on theirs anyway, but he definitely wasn’t as outgoing as he normally is. He was mainly short with Regina, and he knows he shouldn’t have been. He’d had a rough day at work, and he couldn’t seem to shake it.

Swishing his hand in front of him, Neal lets out a throaty, “Ah, it’s okay.”

Looking over toward Regina and Emma, who are hugging each other goodbye and playing with Roland and Gekko, Robin turns back toward Neal. “So, how are things with you two?”

Rubbing the back of his neck, Neal lets out a  _ man, I don’t know _ , saying he really likes her and doesn’t wanna screw things up. It’s only been a week, so he’s trying not to come on too strong.

“I understand,” Robin laughs, patting his best friend on the back. “You guys will figure it out. I have a good feeling about the two of you.”

“You guys ready to go?” Regina asks, coming to wrap her arm around Robin’s waist.

“Yeah.” Robin replies shortly. He’s frustrated with work, his email alerts on his phone keep going off, and he’s aggitated with himself with how he’s treating Regina but can’t seem to pull himself out just yet. He’s in a funk, and truth be told, he should’ve told her to cancel their plans tonight so they could stay in and he could have calmed himself down, but he didn’t. Wanker.

Regina unwraps her arm from around him and moves to hug Neal goodbye as he moves to say goodnight to Emma. 

Once everyone is loaded and Roland is strapped in, they make their way to his apartment in complete silence.

{***************************}

She knows he’s upset about something. That had been abundantly clear since the minute he walked in from work today. She’d finished work early, changed clothes at her place and then headed over to Robin’s to relieve Tink of her duties before he got home. She had been putting a puzzle together in his living with Roland when he came in, huffing and puffing his way back to the bedroom to change clothes for dinner. She thought then that maybe he was just feeling rushed since he’d gotten home later than normal and they were having to leave soon for dinner. 

He’s been short and moody… and mainly with her. She’s almost positive she hasn’t  _ done _ anything today to upset him. They’d gone to bed totally fine last night, had enjoyed each other this morning before work (multiple times), and had barely talked to him during the work day because they were both so busy. 

Walking out from tucking Roland into bed, Robin plops down on the couch with a groan. Regina is in the kitchen, pouring herself a glass of water. Taking a few sips, then sitting it down, she walks over to him in the living room. 

He has his head leaned back against the back of the couch, and his eyes are closed. One hand is covering his eyes, while the other rests on his stomach. Looking down at him sympathetically, she takes his hand covering his eyes and gives him a little pull. Instead of staying frustrated with him, she tells herself that it must be something serious bothering him, and she takes pity on him. Decides to gives him the benefit of the doubt and let him explain himself before she loses her cool (a curse of being Cuban  _ and _ Italian, she muses to herself. Daddy always says her genes automatically give her the quickest temper he’s ever seen, and she needs to remind herself of that when getting irritated. The advice certainly helps in this situation now). 

“Hey,” she says, causing his eyes to open and head to pop up. “Come on.”

Walking him back to his bedroom, Regina says she needs a shower and wants him to join. They’ve taken a lot of showers together in the past week, ever since they’d slept together, some hot and sexy, and others just to simply get clean, actually shower, and talk. Tonight is definitely going to be a  _ just talk and get clean _ shower.

Once under the spray, she lathers up her body wash and begins to wash her body. “Are you okay, honey? You haven’t exactly been yourself tonight...”

Robin sighs, running his hands along her arms, helping to rinse away the bubbles. “I’m sorry, love. I’ve been a sodding arsehole to you all night.”

Switching places now that she’s clean of her floral scented bubbles, he stands under the spray and begins to wash his hair.

“What’s wrong?”

As he’s washing the shampoo, which always smells a little bit like the forest to her, out of his hair, he tells her one of his projects fell through. 

“The salsa company?”

“No,” he sighs, closing his eyes as he lets the water run over his face for a moment before leaning his head out of the water to open his eyes, “it was a project Will’s team was working on. A new type of cookware that this company made. The clients weren’t satisfied, so they dropped us - said they’d find someone else to handle their advertisement. He cost us half a  _ million _ dollars.”

Her eyes widen, shocked to know they’d lost that much profit. She knows it’s not all about money, but that big of a client could really boost your business. Knowing how seriously he takes each and every one of his projects, just as she does with her work, she gets how frustrating it can be to have a project fall through, no matter the amount you’re getting paid. “I’m sorry, baby.”

Switching places so she can be under the water again to wash her face, he says, “It’s alright. I just don’t… know what to do. What would you do if one of your employees designed a space and the clients hated it?”

“I’d fire them,” she says bluntly and without hesitation, shimmying so they can both be under the warm water. 

Picking up his soap to wash his face, he looks at her incredulously. “Fire them?”

“What?” She smirks, running her hand down his chest playfully, “I didn’t get the nickname ‘Evil Queen’ for nothing.” Her employees had  _ lovingly _ started calling her the Evil Queen during her first year of running her own business when they quickly realized she didn’t hold back. If their designs were ugly, she’d say so. If the clients weren’t happy, she wasn’t happy, and would punish them accordingly. So far it’s worked in her favor, seeing as she has a successful company going. Nickname be damned. She secretly likes the fear it instills in new employees - makes them work harder. “Fear is quite an effective tool.”

They both smirk, moving back so their faces aren’t directly in the line of water anymore. The heat from the spray feels nice on her back though, so she keeps their bodies under it for a little bit longer.

“Okay,” she says, closing her eyes to think for a moment while Robin places a soft kiss to her neck. Smiling, she opens her eyes and tells him, “I’d probably suspend them for a week or two and then have them submit every  _ single _ little detail of their projects to me on their next couple of assignments.”

Robin  _ hmmm _ ’s, seeming to think it over. “That actually sounds like a good plan, love.”

Placing a peck to her lips, she grins as he says, “Thanks... and I am sorry for how I acted toward you tonight.”

She moves back so just Robin is under the spray of the water, washing his body while she pulls her hair into a wet bun on the top of her head. “Anytime,” she smiles, adding, “It’s alright, I understand being frustrated. Next time, though, just… talk to me.”

Leaning in to bump his nose against hers, he pulls back and says, “You’re right, I will. And I’ll talk to Will in the morning. Now,” he sighs lovingly, pulling her body closer, pressing another kiss to her neck and dragging his tongue along the muscle there, making her smile and bite her lip, “what do you say we get out of here and watch some telly in bed?”

“Hmm.” She moves her head side to side in contemplation with squinted eyes and pursed lips. “Just watch tv?”

Grinning wickedly, he laughs and bounces his eyebrows up and down, saying, “That isn’t all we can do in bed tonight.”

Capturing his lips in a wet kiss, she reaches behind him and shuts off the water.

“Good,” she giggles, giving his rear a light squeeze.

Once they’re out and wrapped in warm, fuzzy towels, they make their way to the bedroom to get dressed. 

She’s stayed here enough by now that she has her own drawer, mainly full of undergarments and comfortable clothes, like yoga pants and t-shirts she can sleep in. She has a few everyday and work outfits hanging in his closet. Pulling out a pair of black yoga pants and a tank top, she finishes drying off and slips them on. 

Smirking over in his direction when she notices him staring at her getting dressed, she shimmies into her top, taking a little bit extra time to make sure he gets a good view. He’s already toweled off, dressed and laying in bed, so she says, “That was quick.”

Laughing, he tells her pulling on a pair of boxers doesn’t take as long as  _ all of that you’re putting on _ . “Besides, love, you won’t be in those much longer. Is there really a point to putting it all on?”

She shakes her head, chuckling and saying, “No, I guess not.”

Walking over to his bed, she climbs in on the other side and snuggles into his chest as he reaches to turn the bedside lamp off, blanketing the room in darkness except for the glow of the television. Sighing in contentment, she eyes grow heavy. She’s more tired than she thought after this long day.

Looking up to tell Robin they’re late night love making plans might have to wait until the morning, she laughs quietly to herself when she sees his eyes are already closed, and a light snore is coming from his lips.

Looks like she wasn’t the only tired one tonight.

{************************}

“Shh,” Robin shushes into the quietness of the kitchen. “We don’t want to wake up Regina, son.”

Covering his mouth to stifle a giggle, Roland gives his father a chubby little thumbs up. 

He’d woken earlier, tip toeing into Robin’s room to see if they were awake yet. Luckily, Robin had heard the door creak open and was able to get up and meet Roland by the door before his son woke up Regina. 

Taking his hand and walking out into the hallway, Robin questioned why he was up so early. It wasn’t even seven yet, and Roland normally slept until at least seven thirty in the summertime. 

He’d informed Robin that he’d had a bad dream, and the only way to make it better was to make omelettes. 

Chuckling, Robin had agreed, ruffling his son’s hair and leading him into the kitchen. 

Now that they were in here, Roland can’t seem to contain his laughter once Robin lets him beat the eggs.

“They look like snot, Papa!” Roland bellows, standing his Superman action figure up beside the bowl. 

Shaking his head at his son’s antics, he couldn’t help but laugh. “It does, you’re right.”

“But I won’t tell Gina that. She wouldn’t want to eat something that looked like snot.” Roland had the most serious look a first grader could muster on his face, causing Robin to chuckle once again. Who knew making breakfast in bed for your girlfriend could turn into comedy hour?

Once the butter was melted in the pan, Robin lets Roland stand on a step-stool to help him pour the eggs into the skillet. While the eggs are cooking, Robin asks his son what he thinks they should put in the omelette for Regina. Ladies first and all, so they definitely needed to make hers before theirs (Roland insists).

Thinking hard, Roland shrugs his shoulders, saying he doesn’t know what Regina likes, but, “She might like some peppers since she eats those a lot.”

“You’re right, my boy,” Robin says, gliding his fingers through Roland’s messy bed head. “She does like peppers. Let’s add some of those.”

Pulling out a green bell pepper and washing it off, Robin begins to chop while Roland walks over to the refrigerator, searching the contents for the perfect ingredients for his omelette. 

Once the peppers, cheese and ham have been to Regina’s egg, Robin folds one half of the egg over and completes the breakfast. 

Sliding it from the pan to plate, he lets Roland put the plate on a tray. “We need a flower for her tray!” Roland says, seeming alarmed that they would ever consider taking her breakfast in bed sans flower. 

“We don’t have any flowers, Ro.”

Looking around, Roland tells his father he’ll be right back. “You can make our omelettes while you wait,” the five year old tells him sweetly but seriously, dimples shining for good measure. 

Laughing out an  _ aye aye, Captain _ , he turns to continue making omelettes for him and Roland while he waits on him to… do whatever he’s just run off to do.

He hears him rustling through his toy shelf, muttering to himself, but figures he shouldn’t question him when he seems to be on such an important quest.

Just as Robin is finishing up the other two omelettes and putting them on their own plates, Roland comes bounding back into the kitchen. “Ta-da!” Roland shouts, instantly covering his mouth as Robin shushes him once again. It’s barely seven thirty and he wants Regina to get as much sleep as she can. Lord knows he wishes he could have slept longer. 

“Ta-da!” Roland says again, this time in a loud whisper. He’s holding what looks like a toy-made flower in his hand. “It’s Gina’s flower!”

The stem is made of small unifix cubes that Roland had stacked together. He’s pulled out all the dark green ones to make the stem, always the literal kid that he is. The petals are made out of colorful pipe cleaners that were a part of a sand craft set his mum had gotten him for Christmas (that he’s yet to even play with). The pipe cleaners are stuck and snapped into the top few cubes so they hold in place. It’s… not the best looking flower in the world, but he knows Regina will love it. He’ll give his son props, it definitely looks like a flower, seeing as he only had a few supplies to work with. 

“I drew her one, too, in case she doesn’t like this one.”

Tilting his head to the side, he bends down to be eye level with Roland and says, “She’s going to love it. Both of them.”

Roland beams and says they need to go give her her breakfast. Standing on his step-stool and reaching into the cup cabinet, he pulls down a clean plastic cup and sits his unifix cube flower into it before setting it down on the tray. 

The tray is now complete, according to Roland, with her omelette, fruit, flower and coffee.

Robin puts his and Roland’s omelettes on another tray and hands it to Roland. Their tray doesn’t have any juice on it, so it’s the easier choice for the boy to hold. “Let’s go.”

Grinning, Roland quietly makes his way down the hall with Robin close behind. 

Knocking the door open with his hip, Robin walks in and goes around to Regina’s side of the bed, placing the tray down on the bedside table. He’s surprised the aroma of coffee has yet to rouse her from slumber, but he’s grateful, for he knows his son wants to wake her.

“Giiiiinaaaaa,” Roland loudly whispers, sitting his and Robin’s omelettes down on the bench at the foot of the bed and climbing into bed on Robin’s side. 

Robin notices the small smile playing on Regina’s lips and wonders how long she’s actually been awake, clearly just letting Roland have his fun at this point.

Watching as his son lays down next to Regina, patting her cheek gently. “Gina.”

Getting no response from her, Roland dramatically huffs and uses her full name, “Regina!” 

Chuckling, Regina slowly opens her eyes, taking Roland’s hand in her and pretending to nibble on his fingers. 

Roland squeals, sitting up in excitement. “We made you breakfast!” he exclaims, pointing to the tray Robin had once again picked up when he saw Regina stirring. 

“You did?” she questions, looking over at Robin. A gorgeous smile breaks out on her face, reminding Robin once again how lucky he is to have her. “Thank you.”

“You’re quite welcome, milady,” he says, placing the tray on her lap when she sits up, propping her back against the headboard. “Although, this wasn’t  _ my _ idea.” 

His eyes turn to look at Roland who had nuzzled himself into her side as Regina turns her head to look at the boy. “You made me breakfast in bed?”

“Uh-huh!” Roland smiles brightly, “Papa had to help, but I made the flowers all on my own!”

Chuckling, she nods, saying, “Well the flowers are beautiful and this looks delicious. Thank you… both of you.”

She places a kiss to the top of Roland’s head and then takes a sip of her coffee, eyeing the other tray at the foot of the bed and asking if they are expecting her to eat three omelettes. 

Robin and Roland both giggle, while Roland crawls to the end of the bed, saying those are his and Papa’s. 

Robin climbs in beside her, settling against the headboard once he has his breakfast in his lap. Roland situates himself in the middle of them, body turned the opposite way so he is facing the adults. It’s a little breakfast triangle that they’ve created.

Remembering their juice in the kitchen, Robin goes to collect them. As he’s making his way out of the room, he hears Roland ask Regina to cut his egg in half, to which she affirms with an  _ of course, baby _ , making him smile. 

He’s glad Roland has a woman like Regina in his life now.

After retrieving their drinks, he walks down the hall toward his bedroom with a glass of orange juice in each hand, and he can hear Regina and Roland chatting quietly about their plans for the day. Roland is telling her how he plans to finish a puzzle with Tink while Papa is at work.

“That sounds like a good plan,” she giggles. She goes on to tell Roland that she has to work on a doctor’s office today as well as a daycare.

“I used to go to daycare!”

“I know,” she laughs, “but now you’re a big boy and go to elementary school.”

“Yeah!” Roland exclaims, “I’ll be in first grade when we go back!”

Robin stands just outside of the doorway, listening to their conversation. He knows he should make himself known, but the moment is too cute to interrupt. He peeks his head around the door frame. There’s a mirror on top of his dresser that sits against the opposite wall of the bed. Luckily, this provides him a view of Regina and Roland in bed without having to walk into the room.

“Do you like your flowers, Gina?”

“Yes, sweetheart, I love them.” Robin sees Roland sit up then, planting a kiss on Regina’s cheek.

Roland lays back against Regina’s side, telling her he made one with cubes but drew her one to keep. He’ll need his cubes back, after all, so he can keep building a town for SpiderMan to save.

Regina smiles down at Roland, saying, “That’s fine, baby. I can take the one you drew for me to work.”

“Really?!”

She smirks, kissing the top of his head. “Of course! I can put it next to a drawing of Henry’s.”

Roland’s eyes light up then, going on the ramble about all the pictures he could draw Regina to take to work if she ever needs more.

After a pause of silence, Regina says, “Thank you for breakfast, Roland. It was delicious.”

He hears Roland sigh contently before saying, “You’re welcome. I love you, Gina.”

“Well, I love you too, Ro.”

Smiling to himself, he walks back in with the juice. Regina is done eating and has placed her tray on the bedside table. She’s holding her coffee in one hand, while the other is resting on Roland’s back. Roland has clearly finished his breakfast, too, noting there’s an extra plate on Regina’s tray and is laying on his belly, half on the mattress, half on Regina’s stomach. 

“Here’s your juice, my boy,” Robin states, holding out the cup. “You need to drink something to wash down all that egg.”

Sitting up, Roland takes a few gulps of his orange juice, then lays back down with a yawn. Regina runs her fingers through his hair and looks up at Robin, smiling. “Looks like someone is still t-i-r-e-d.”

“I’m not tired,” Roland protests with a sleepy pout on his lips, making Regina and Robin’s eyebrows to raise as Robin climbs back into bed. Clearly spelling out words is no longer an option around his child. 

Laughing, Regina assures him she knows he’s not, but suggests, “Why don’t we lay here for a little bit and watch some cartoons before Papa and I have to get ready for work?”

With a mumbled  _ mmhmm _ from the not-so-tired boy, Robin switches on the television and finds the cartoon channel that Roland likes.

His breakfast is now, at best, lukewarm, getting closer to just being cold at this point. He takes a few generous bites, realizing he probably should’ve taken it with him to get juice so he could have popped it in the microwave. It’s not bad though, edible at least. Taking the last bite of his omelette, Robin looks over at Regina. She’s got her head resting against the headboard and her eyes are closed as she continues running her fingers through Roland’s brown curls.

God, he loves her. Knows he’d been an ass last night, but she’d been so understanding. Never did she get upset with him for being short with her, instead just listened to his problem and helped turn his mood around. He sends up a short prayer of thanks to whomever sent this amazing woman into his life. He doesn’t know what he ever did to deserve the love of this woman, but he never wants to lose it.

The only sounds coming from the room are the barely audible cartoon and the whirring of his fan. He hears the low murmurings of his son’s snores and knows he’s fallen back asleep again. Can’t say he blames him, with Regina’s nails gently combing through his hair he’d have fallen back asleep, too.

He closes his eyes for a second before he hears Regina’s quiet voice saying, “Make sure you set the alarm. I have to get in the shower so I’m not late, but I don’t want you to oversleep.”

“Okay, love,” he says, reaching over the set the alarm on his phone as she carefully slides out from under Roland’s embrace. Laying his son’s head back onto her spot of the bed, he wiggles a bit before settling back into slumber. Situating himself lower into the bed as Roland’s feet come to rest on his thighs, Robin smiles. Maybe sleeping in isn’t such a bad idea. 

“Robin,” Regina says. Forcing his eyes open, he turns his head to look at her. She’s standing in the doorway of the master bathroom, fingers tapping the doorframe. Her yoga pants are still on, but tank top is removed, leaving her in just a sports bra up top. Christ, alive. She’s so bloody sexy. 

“I really don’t want you to be late. You might need to come take a shower now,” she finishes in her sultriest voice. 

Throwing his head back with a muffled chortle, Robin sits up straighter, remembering that yes, he does have to go admonish one of his longest time employees and friends for costing his company a great sum of money yesterday. It’s not even the money that had upset Robin so much, but the fact that his name is attached to these advertisements and someone out there was unhappy with something his company produced. That is unacceptable in his eyes.

Glancing over to Roland, once again thankful that his child can sleep through any and all noises around him, he removes Roland’s legs from his and stands.

He smirks as he saunters toward her saying, “You’re right. I probably need to get in that shower with you and get ready.”

Looking up at him through long lashes, Regina gives him the sexiest smile she has. Pulling him by the collar of his t-shirt, she purrs, “Right this way, Mr. Locksley.”

Fuck.

What a great start to the day.

 


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the reviews, retweets and likes you guys have given me. The last chapter, I really was tempted to stop writing because I just didn’t like it lol but y’all encouraged me to keep it up… plus I’m stubborn and want y’all to see how this ends haha   
> ONE MORE CHAPTER TO GO! I can’t believe it lol… Enjoy this super domestic/fluffy one, and the last chapter will (hopefully) be posted before I leave the country in June! :)  
> As always, leave a review and let me know what you think. Thanks!  
> {***************************}

**Chapter Eleven**

It’s been two weeks since Regina had revealed his redesigned offices to him, and Robin couldn’t love them more. The new look has made his employees more motivated to work, and he feels more comfortable bringing clients into the space for meetings.

Things are going well. Robin’s  _ Sleep Tight _ campaign is finally finished and was a huge success. The print ad is scheduled to start running within the next few weeks, while the commercial is slated to hit the tv circuit starting in September.

The past two weeks have consisted of good news on the work front; Regina’s work going just as  well (save for the annoying Mr. and Mrs. King, who have made their mansion the most insufferable project she’s ever had to work on, as she’s told him several times). Along with that, he and Roland have spent almost every night with Regina while Henry has been away at camp. They’ve been switching off apartments – spending a few nights at his, then loading up and spending a few nights at hers. There’d only been a handful of nights they’d spent apart due to work or her going out with Emma for dinner and drinks to catch up while she was kid free. Those nights, however, they still made it a point to talk on the phone before going to bed, which often led to more…  _ adult _ conversations.

_ “How’s Emma?” he asked, settling down onto his bed. Regina had gone out to dinner with Emma tonight and has an early work day in the morning for the Kings, so they’d agreed earlier they’d sleep in their own apartments for the night. Looking at her on FaceTime now, though, he can’t recall why he’d thought that was a good decision. _

_ “She’s good. She says hello and that she’s excited for the Fourth of July at Neal’s.” _

_ “Ah, yeah,” he says, watching her get ready for bed, “that’ll be fun.” _

_ “I’m glad those two hit it off so well,” she says, walking over to her dresser and taking her hair down. She’d worn it half up, half down tonight, but she breathed a sigh of relief, telling him it felt nice to finally let it all down and run her fingers through it.  _

_ “Mmm,” Robin hums, “good thing you have such a smart boyfriend who suggested we set them up.” _

_ Laughing, Regina tells him she thinks it was her pros and cons list she made before telling Emma about Neal that did it. “You can never go wrong with a pros and cons list!” _

_ Regina is nothing if not a planner. Before making any big decision (or sometimes even small ones), she makes a list of pros and cons for the situation. The first time Robin saw her do it, when deciding if taking the boys to the aquarium on a school night was a good idea, he couldn’t help but laugh at her, telling her she was adorably neurotic, which made her giggle and roll her eyes. That was one way to describe her all right. _

_ Robin lets out a hearty laugh before saying, “Ah, yes, of course. What exactly was on this list, anyway? I don’t think you ever showed me, just Emma.” _

_ She has her phone propped up on her dresser so she can still see him but is slipping out of her little black dress to put on pajamas, revealing her black, lace bra and thong as she aswers him. “Hmm, well if I remember correctly, a pro was definitely that Neal is a nice, sweet and caring guy. Something Emma usually doesn’t go for.” _

_ “Hm, he’s funny, too,” Robin adds distractedly, tilting his head to the side, clearly appreciating the view of her changing clothes. The sight of her in just her underwear is enough to have him moan. _

_ Giggling, she says, “See something you like?” and shimmies her bra covered breast toward the phone’s camera. _

_ “God, woman,” he groans, resituating himself in the bed, “don’t toy with me when I can’t drive over there and have my way with you.” _

_ She changes into a fresh pair of lace panties and leggings before removing her bra, giving him a close up view of her breasts, her nipples nice and hard thanks to the cool air conditioning no doubt blowing through her room, laughing at him again and slipping on a red sports bra and thin, black tank top. _

_ Taking the phone and walking over to her bed, she slips under her covers. “I want you, too, Robin. So much.” _

_ Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he breathes out a, “Do you now?” _

_ She hums, telling him she’s been wanting him all night. Says that talking to Emma about how wonderful he is did nothing but turn her on. _

_ “I’m wonderful, eh?” _

_ Smiling into the camera and twitching her eyebrows up seductively, she says, “You know you are,” before grinning that little minx of a grin and sliding her hand down toward her hips. She’s pushed the covers down now so he has a good view of her body. _

_ “I know what I’d want you to do if you were here tonight,” she whispers, moving the phone so he can see her hand dip into her leggings. _

_ Moaning, he reaches inside his boxers and takes his cock into his own hands, pumping a few times. He moves the phone back so she can see it, telling her if he were there, he’d be in between her legs, sucking on her clit and making her scream. _

_ “Mmm,” she moans as she bites down on her bottom lip, rubbing circles against her own clit, “that would feel so good. Would you touch me like this?” _

_ Shit. _

_ “Yeah, baby. God, you’re so sexy. Does that feel good? Touching yourself?” _

_ She moans again, saying it does, but his fingers are better. “Maybe tomorrow I’ll touch myself while you’re inside me.” _

_ “Sounds like a bloody good plan to me,” he pants, cock throbbing. “Are you going to come?” _

_ “A - almost,” she stutters, checking that he can see exactly what she’s doing through the phone’s screen. “What else are you going to do to me?” _

_ Letting out another groan, he goes on to tell her he’s going to make her come on his tongue and then take her from behind while she touches herself - one of their favorite positions, they’ve discovered. They go on, telling each other what they want to do as soon as they’re together the next day, panting and moaning while pleasuring themselves. Within minutes, they’re both coming, panting each other’s names into the stillness of their bedrooms. _

Life is good. But today, his apartment is abuzz with excitement between his girlfriend and his son.

Henry finally comes home today.

He’s been gone at his Young Authors camp for three weeks and has been missed terribly by his mother… and Robin and Roland. Henry called every night while away to talk to Regina and would also end up chatting with himself or Roland for a while, too. Robin has grown quite fond of the boy over the past five months that he’s known him, and he can’t wait to get him home so the four of them can spend more time together before school starts back up.

Regina had admitted the other night that the past three weeks, while being wonderfully enjoyable with him and Roland, have felt very empty without her little prince around. Robin can’t help but sympathize with her; he can’t imagine having Roland away for three whole weeks.

“Papa! Wake up!”

Robin’s eyes pop open with a  _ humph!  _ spilling from his mouth as Roland jumps onto the bed, landing his elbow right into Robin’s stomach.

Looking up at his father sheepishly, the messy mop of brown curls apologizes, then turns to face Regina.

“Mornin’, Gina!” Roland exclaims, snuggling into her warm embrace.

Smiling that sleepy smile down at his son, Regina greets him with a  _ good morning, sweetheart _ and a kiss to his head before smiling over at Robin.

They’ve been dating for almost four months and have been spending most nights together for at least the last month, so Roland is now used to seeing Regina in his father’s bed.

With a sleepy gurgle in his voice, Robin looks over at his son and asks, “What’s got you so excited this morning?”

“Henry is coming home today!” Roland squeals with excitement, bouncing up excitedly onto the haunches of his legs, “Now, get up so we can go get him!” Looking over disapprovingly at his son for using such a demanding tone, his son adds an innocent  _ please, Papa? _ before grinning at him and going to lay his head on his father’s stomach.

“You’re right, my boy.” Robin matches Roland’s grin, and he climbs out of bed, scooping his son up in the process. “What do you say we all get ready and grab some breakfast on the way out of town to pick up Henry?”

With Roland’s excited  _ Yeah! _ as he runs from the room, Regina finally sits up, smirking over at Robin.

“He’s just as excited as I am, I think.” She walks over and pecks Robin’s lips before heading into the bathroom to brush her teeth.

“That he is, love.”

After another two hours, everyone is showered, dressed and happily munching away on their biscuits as Robin drives toward Henry’s camp.

Regina has been oddly quiet this morning so with a furrowed brow, he asks with concern, “Everything alright, darling? You seem a bit quiet this morning.”

“Yeah,” she sighs, leaning her head back onto the headrest, “I’m just excited to see Henry. I’ve never been away from him for this long.”

Taking her hand and kissing the back of her knuckles, Robin tells her, “I know. And I’m sure he’s just as excited to see you.”

Smiling over lovingly at each other, they ride the rest of the way to camp in companionable silence, breaking the reprieve every now and then to chat softly as Roland sings along to the Trolls singing in his headphones. Having a DVD player installed in the backseat was a great idea – it’s kept Roland happily entertained on many a road trip over the last few years. The camp is only an hour drive, but the movie kept him occupied so Robin and Regina could talk without having to speak over the singing toys.

{*********************}

Elation is the only word Regina can use to describe how she is feeling today.

Three weeks away from her baby boy with only one phone call per night has been torture. Granted, she’s had Robin and Roland to keep her company, and it’s been lovely, but nothing quite seems right without her son around.

Stepping out of Robin’s 4-Runner, she is instantly accosted by two arms wrapping themselves around her middle and a breathy  _ Hey, Mom! _

Tears instantly springing to her eyes, Regina cradles Henry’s head with her hand and lays her cheek to the top of his head, embracing her son after so many days apart.

At his  _ I missed you _ , she breathes out a shaky, “I missed you, too, baby.”

Pulling themselves from their private moment, Henry looks past Regina’s shoulder to greet the boys.

“Hey, Robin! Roland!”

Roland clearly cannot contain his excitement anymore (Robin had warned him to let Regina greet Henry first by herself as they made their way to the pick up station), as he skips toward Henry, throwing his arms out to hug him.

After exchanging  _ I missed you’s _ with Robin and Roland, which made Regina’s heart melt just a little bit more, the four of them make their way back to Robin’s SUV.

“How was camp, Henry?” Robin asks, pulling out of the long pick up line and heading toward the interstate.

Henry tells them it was awesome, and he wants to go again next year. “I really hope I win the competition for sixth graders, too!”

“I’m sure you will, honey,” Regina reassures, turning slightly to look at him in the back seat. “What was your peach and your pit of the whole trip?”

At Robin’s questioning gaze, Regina explains that they’ve always done a peach, something you liked, and a pit, something you disliked, about all their trips they’ve gone on.

At his  _ ahh _ , Henry says, “My peach was horseback riding!”

“Not the writing class?” Regina laughs, surprised that he would like anything more than writing about heroes and villains.

Henry laughs as he says he really liked the classes, and if he could have two peaches, that would be his second. “But I got to ride every day! It was so much fun. I rode this black horse, named Frank, I don’t know why that’s his name, but he’s old and calm and he was like  _ my _ horse after a few days.”

Regina smiles warmly back at her son as he rattles on about Frank the horse, saying, “Well, you’ll have to call your grandpa and tell him all about Frank. I’m sure he would love it.”

“What about the pit?” Robin asks, turning onto the interstate.

Regina always gets a little car sick on the interstate so she turns back to face the front instead of Henry and looks out of the front windshield.

Henry tells them that the pit was the food at lunch because  _ they didn’t even serve dessert! _ causing both Regina and Robin to laugh.

“But they had dessert at dinner, so,” he shrugs, pursing his lips in contemplation, “I guess it was okay.”

Regina asks about his writing class and he excitedly tells them about how he got to invent his very own hero -  a teenage boy who was trying to find his lost sibling - and a villain. His villain, he said, was an evil sorceress who could conjure up fire in the palm of her hand. She was jealous of the hero and his sister because she had always been an only child, with mean parents, so she wanted to keep the hero and his sibling separated.

Henry tells them that in the end, the hero and his sister were reunited and ended up taking the villain in as an adopted sister.

“Wow,” Robin exclaims, eyebrows lifting as he glances over at Regina quickly before focusing back on the road, “that sounds really interesting!”

Regina smiles warmly and agrees, saying, “Do you have it with you for us to read?”

Henry tells them that the camp owners are binding all of their writings and will send them to their homes within the next few weeks.

“Well, I can’t wait to read it,” Robin says with a smile on his face, “It sounds really, really cool. I like that the hero and villain become friends at the end.”

“Thanks!” Henry says, bouncing in his seat, “I wanted to show that even people who seem evil still deserve happiness. Cause she wasn’t really evil, just misunderstood. You know?”

Glancing at Robin, Regina can tell he is thoroughly impressed by her son’s insight. She’s always loved the way Henry saw the world, believing that there was good in everyone, so she’s not surprised that he gave his villain a happy ending.

“It sounds wonderful, sweetheart.” She smiles, turning to look at him again, “I can’t wait to get it back from the camp.”

After stopping by Robin’s to pack a bag for him and Roland, they head over the Regina’s. They decided on their drive to camp earlier to let Henry sleep in his own bed tonight since he’s been gone for so long. It’s always nice to sleep in the comfort of your own bed after being away.

On the drive back to her apartment,  _ Trolls _ was no longer paying and Roland could not stop talking. He informed Henry of all the things he, his papa, and Gina did while he was away, even though he claims  _ nothing was as fun without you there _ , which makes Regina and Robin share a loving smile.

Listening to the boys ramble on in the backseat about what the other did over the last three weeks, Regina closes her eyes and leans her head back, enjoying the way Robin’s thumbs caresses the back of her knuckles.

{**************************}

That night, after a quick dinner of pizza and breadsticks, and baths for everyone, the boys huddle on the floor, planning out the perfect fort to watch a movie from.

Seeing as his lovely girlfriend is getting some work done on her laptop while the movie plays, Robin figures he might as well use this time to be a kid again and help the boys build the fortress of blankets.

Looking over to Regina every now and then, and catching her amused eye roll in their direction, Robin continues to pile up pillow upon pillow, while Roland and Henry drape all the blankets in the apartment over the chairs they’d dragged in from the dining room. Regina had made the comment that it was more of a hassle to pull everything out, which he was now starting to understand, but Henry was home and a proper movie night they shall have.

“Robin, let’s put this blanket on top of those two chairs,” Henry says, pointing to the chairs closest to the couch.

“Excellent idea!” Robin exclaims, grabbing one end of the blanket and draping it over the chairs with Henry, having far too much fun with this.

Once everyone (all the boys, at least) are settled into their blanket tent, Robin walks over to where Regina sits criss-cross on the couch, laptop perched in her lap. She’s clad in her gray, calf length yoga pants and an oversized t-shirt. Her hair is wet and pulled into a bun, and she’s wearing those black rimmed glasses that stir him just a little bit crazy. She looks so cute. Comfortable. At home. And he loves it. He’s so glad she’s able to let her natural self show in moments like this. He loves her, all of her, and he’s overjoyed at the thought that she’s just as content to let him see all sides of her, even her “grungy” side, as he is with her seeing his. Sure, he’s seen her in her pajamas plenty of times, but something about tonight strikes him. She’s perfectly content to work on her computer while he and the boys build forts and watch movies. He feels… at home… in her home, and it hits him (for the millionth time) how perfect she is for him. This whole life they’ve started building together makes him blissful.

It’s with that thought that he meanders over to sit next to her on the couch, giving her thigh a light squeeze. Leaning into her neck, while her eyes are still, somewhat, fixated on her computer screen, he gives her skin a light peck before whispering, “Are you sure you don’t want to come into the fort with us?”

Grinning, she tips her glasses down the bridge of her nose before exhaling and looking over at him. “I can’t. I have to put these last finishing touches on the King’s farmhouse. I’m meeting with them on Monday and want it to be perfect.”

As she squeezes his hand that’s resting on her leg, he says, “I understand, love. You work. The boys and I will finish this movie.” Kissing her cheek, he stands, saying, “Then we’ll tuck these rascals in and crawl into bed together.”

Smiling up at him, she sighs a content sigh, “That sounds amazing. Can’t wait. I’m exhausted.”

It’s about halfway through the movie when her phone rings.

Looking down at her phone, her brow furrows.  _ Mother _ is what the caller i.d. is displaying. What is her mother doing calling her so late?

Cora usually calls during the day on a Saturday that she’s not at the horse races or early in the evenings when she knows Regina and Henry will just be finishing dinner. Glancing up at the television, she sees the clock on the power box reads  _ 9:45.  _ It’s much later than either boy ever gets to stay up, but it’s summer and Henry is back, so she’s not going to make too big of a deal out of it. They’re watching something with a sea turtle going on an adventure. She isn’t quite sure, fairly certain Roland picked it from the Netflix screen simply because of the ocean animal depicted on the picture. He’s been enthralled with aquatic creatures ever since their visit to the aquarium so many months ago.

It’s the second movie of the night, and she’s not quite certain the two youngest boys are even still awake in there. Luckily, Robin has provided enough distraction for their sons that she was able to finish her project so she could spend the rest of the weekend with them and not have to think about this farmhouse anymore.

Closing her laptop, she stands and walks into the kitchen. Regina swipes her phone to answer the call. “Mother?”

“Regina, dear,” Cora croons into the receiver, “How are you?”

“I’m fine…” She’s apprehensive to talk right now. She hasn’t spoken to her mother since their dinner from hell a few weeks ago, right after Daniel attacked her. She hasn’t told her mother about the incident and didn’t know how to bring it up, or even if she should. She had chosen not to tell Cora when it first happened because, well, Cora loves Daniel, and she honestly didn’t think she’d believe her. Daniel had never acted like that in the past, and if Regina hadn’t experienced it first hand, she probably wouldn’t have believed it either.

There’s something in the way her mother asks about her well being though that gives her pause.

“Why are you calling so late, Mother?”

Huffing out a breath, Cora replies, “Isn’t a mother allowed to call her daughter?”

“Well, yes, but,” is all she gets out before Cora interrupts her.

“Besides, Henry came home from camp today, did he not? And I wanted to speak with him.”

Sighing, Regina explains that Henry is already asleep (she’s not one hundred percent sure he is, but he will be soon, and talking to his grandparents about his exciting three week trip will send a jolt of adrenaline through him that she’s doesn’t need right now).

After telling Cora she’ll have to call her tomorrow and let her and Henry Sr. speak with him, there’s an awkward pause.

“Was there something else?” Regina nervously asks, tucking a curl that has fallen into her face  behind her ear.

“Regina, I know what happened with Daniel,” Cora finally says, her voice barely above a whisper.

Oh. So, she does know.

“How did you…”

“I ran into Daniel’s mother at the race last weekend,” Cora states, voice dripping with the snootiness it gets when she speaks of being at the races. “When she pulled me off to the side to apologize for her son’s behavior, you can only imagine the confusion I felt when I didn’t know to what she was referring. She told me everything, dear.”

“Oh. Well…” still not quite knowing what to say. By this point, Robin has clearly noticed her absence from the couch, because he’s walking toward her with a questioning gaze.

Mouthing  _ my mother _ in her direction, he  _ oh _ s and comes to stand behind her, rubbing circles on her lower back. It’s comforting. Nice. She needed his contact while having this conversation.

“I didn’t want to tell you because I know how much you like Daniel.” It’s with the mention of his name that Robin’s hand falters a tad on her back before continuing his ministrations to her suddenly strained muscles.

Cora tells her she needn’t have worried, voice softening as she says, “You’re my daughter, Regina. I will always be on your side.”

Her mother’s admission isn’t totally unwarranted or surprising. She doesn’t have the best relationship with her, but it’s also not the worst. She should have known her mother would believe and support her.

She tells Cora that Daniel has gone to Maine for a few months to seek help, to which she tells her that Daniel’s mother told her all about it already.

“Have you told Henry?”

Regina pauses her slow rocking back and forth to the rhythm of Robin’s miniature massage to glance over at the fort. The boys are in there somewhere, she just can’t see them, only the glow of the TV casting shadows across the dark room. “Not yet, Mother,” she sighs tiredly, rubbing a hand over her face, “He just got home today.”

“I understand. What are you going to tell him?” Cora inquires, “Surely you’re not going to tell him the truth.”

Irritation flashes across Regina’s eyes. Sure, she might not tell him the whole truth, but Henry saw what his father did to her. He saw her hands pinned to the kitchen cabinet. They’d talked about it briefly when she dropped him off at camp and Henry asked if she was okay, which broke Regina’s heart. She never wanted Henry to see that. She wants to snap at her mother and tell her that Henry knows anyway, but she knows she’ll never hear the end of it if Cora privy to the fact that her grandchild saw his father attack his mother.

So, Regina sighs defeatedly and says, “I’m not going to tell him everything, Mother, but I am going to be as honest as I can.” She presses her back further into Robin’s hand, hoping he gets the hint that his hands can knead deeper on her low back. Blissfully, his hands press a little firmer into her aching back. “Therapy is nothing to be ashamed of, so I want Henry to know that his dad is doing all he can to be the best for himself and for Henry.”

Cora hums,  _ tsk _ s her teeth a bit before agreeing, saying Henry should know that, and she trusts Regina to talk with him openly about the situation as much as possible.

“I’m just glad he’s going to get help,” Cora resigns, sighing a little bit into the phone.

“Me, too,” Regina tells her, glancing over her shoulder to give Robin a small smile. “It’ll make me feel better to have him around Henry once he’s worked through some of his issues.”

“Yes, well,” Cora tuts, “He’s going to be missing from the country club this year for the Fourth of July. I would love it if you, Henry, Robin and… Roland, was it? Could come.”

Turning in Robin’s arms so they’re chest to chest, she begins rubbing circles above his heart.

“Thank you for the offer, Mother,” she says, leaning up to press a quick peck to Robin’s cheek as he smiles down at her, “but we already have plans. We’re going to his friend, Neal’s, lake house with Emma.”

Emma and Neal had, unsurprisingly, based on her pros and cons list, hit it off from the moment Robin and Regina set them up the other week. Their first date had been the night Emma was supposed to babysit Henry but cancelled, and they’ve been together ever since. They’ve gone on coffee dates during their lunch breaks from work and everything. It’s cute, and Regina is happy that she’ll be able to spend the holiday with her her boyfriend  _ and _ her best friend.

“Oh, that’s alright, dear.” Her mother says, sounding a bit disappointed. Robin grins at her, eyeing the phone. The apartment is completely silent save for the whirl of the ceiling fan in the other room and the low hum of the refrigerator. The movie has apparently gone off since she walked into the kitchen, the movie’s screen projecting a blue hue over the living room, and the boys are most certainly passed out in their pillow fort for the night if they’ve yet to emerge and start playing. In the silence of the kitchen, Regina realizes that the only thing to be heard in the small space between her and Robin is her mother’s voice. Silently sighing and matching his grin, she apologizes to her mother again.

After Cora assures her that it’s fine and she should  _ enjoy the holiday with your friends, _ they say their goodbyes and hang up.

Placing her phone onto the counter behind Robin’s back, she wraps her arms up and around his shoulders, leaning her head again his chest. He’s slightly swaying them now, and she thinks she might fall asleep right here and now.

“Well, she just sounds lovely,” Robin sniggers, burying his nose into her damp hair. “I can’t wait to finally meet her one of these days.”

Chuckling, Regina leans back to swat his chest before laying her head back down, enjoying the hushed silence of the apartment.

After a few moments, Regina breaks the bubble. “Are the boys asleep?”

Sighing contentedly into her hair, he answers her in the affirmative and places a kiss to the top of her head.

Untangling herself from his grasp, Regina turns to face the sink, saying she wants to get these last few plates clean before they head to bed.

“You wash, I dry?” she questions, turning her gaze onto Robin.

He agrees, with an overly dramatic sigh and roll of his eyes, causing Regina to chuckle under her breath. 

After a few moments of well behaved dish washing, Regina jumps back from the sink when a light splash of water hits her in the face. Looking down at her shirt and wiping her face off, she quietly exclaims, “Robin!”  

Chuckling, Robin flicks his wet hand in her direction again. 

“Oh, you’ve asked for it, mister!” she laughs, running her hand under the water’s faucet and flicking it in his direction. Robin jumps back just in time though, barely getting any water on himself.

He runs to the other side of the kitchen, while Regina follows him with her wet hand, trying to splash him in payback. He’s too quick though, and she misses again.

Giggling, she runs back to the sink to wet her hand again, just as Robin does the same.

“I dare you!” she heatedly whispers, laughing and running away from him. The floor is getting more water on it than planned, but she’ll wipe it up before they leave the kitchen.

Robin flicks his hand in her direction while she’s distracted by the wet kitchen floor, causing her eyes to widen as she flings her hand in his direction, her water droplets landing on his shirt.

Robin calls a truce, grabbing a dish towel off of the oven’s door handle and begins cleaning up the water that has landed on the floor during their water war.

Regina turns toward the sink, pretending as if she’s going to continue washing the dishes, muttering a playful  _ Yeah, truce. We need to get this done _ under her breath. While Robin makes his way back to the sink, she wets her hands again. 

Robin wraps his arms around her waist, apologizing, “You’re right, darling. Let’s get these dishes finished so we can go to bed.”

Turning in his arms, she flings her wet hand in his direction, water landing right in his face. “Ha!” she exclaims, laughing but trying to keep her voice down so the sleeping boys in the next room don’t wake up.

Throwing his head back in shushed laughter, Robin holds up his hands in surrender. “You got me!” he proclaims, wiping the water off of his face. “We’re even now.”

“Not even close,” she smirks in mock-evilness, “that was only twice I got your face. You got mine at least four times.” She giggles, turning to face the sink again and picks up the last plate waiting to be rinsed off and placed in the dishwasher. “But you’re right. These dishes need to get done.”

Agreeing, Robin comes to stand next to her, saying he’ll finish up. “Oh, no,” she says, “I don’t trust you with this water anymore,” causing Robin to chuckle.

“Alright, alright,” he says, rubbing her lower back, “I’ll stand here like a perfect gentleman while you finish.”

Looking over to him, she grins and says, “Just don’t get in my way.”

Holding up two hands to show her he’s not crossing his fingers, something that is so very reminiscent of Roland when he’s been caught in a lie, he brings one hand to cover his heart and looks down at her saying, “Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it.”

After setting the last of the dishes into the dishwasher, Regina stretches onto her tip toes and kisses his lips. It’s nothing too heated, the boys are just in the other room after all, asleep or not, but it lingers and it causes a moan to escape both of their lips. Their day has been filled to the brim with car rides, movies and unending chattering from both boys. They haven’t really had a moment alone since this morning before Roland jumped into bed with them, but she doesn’t mind. This peaceful feeling that has surrounded her all day could never go away and she’d be just fine with it. She loves this feeling – feeling like this is how life is supposed to be. With Robin. And two sleeping boys inside a living room fort. She’s content, happy.

She loves this feeling – loves how Robin makes her feel so at home, even though they are technically  _ in  _ her home. She’s not sure if it’s the calm that’s been surrounding her today (the past four months, really, she since she started dating Robin) or the peaceful late night silence of her apartment as Robin sways them back and forth while running his hand up and down her back, but she finally feels at peace in the world.

Leaning in to give him one more, a tad bit more forceful, kiss, she looks into his eyes and says “Ready for bed?”

Grinning that wicked grin, he takes her hand and leads her to the bedroom.

{*******************}

After brushing and flossing his teeth inside her en suite bathroom, Robin cuts the lights off in the loo and walks toward the bed.

Roland had woken up moments after them walking into her bedroom, so Regina had gone to put him in “his” bed - really just an extra cushioned pallet on Henry’s floor tonight. He usually sleeps on the couch, but sleepily claimed he wanted to be next to Henry who had already climbed into his own bed moments ago.

Settling into bed and opening his book, he begins reading. He’s been, unashamedly, reading the Sister Grimm’s series now that he has Henry in his life. They’re a favorite of the boy’s and Henry had admitted to wanting to be able to talk with Robin about the books. And who was he to refuse such an innocent offer? So, he had begun reading them while Henry was at camp. It had given them something to talk about over the phone while he was away.

Regina walks into the bedroom and shuts off the overhead light, casting the room in a warm glow from Robin’s bedside lamp as she curls into his side.

Looking down at her, he kisses the top of her head. They discuss the part of the story he’s on now for a few minutes before she goes quiet.

“You alright?” he questions, slipping his bookmark inside his current page, laying it on the bedside table and sliding deeper into the covers to envelope Regina in his arms.

At her muffled  _ mmhmm _ , he pulls away slightly to get a better look at her face. She hadn’t seemed upset after her phone call with her mother, so he thinks she might just be tired.

“I’m just stressed about the King’s project… and I’m tired.” She grins through a perfectly timed yawn, looking up at him.

He assures her that she’s done an amazing job on the King’s mansion-turned-farmhouse, and she has nothing to worry about.

Sitting up, he pulls her up with him as he leans in to kiss her lips one more time.

“I know,” she sighs, pulling out of their kiss. “They’re just so overbearing and keep changing aspects of my design, even though I told them they couldn’t keep doing that.” She takes her hair out of it’s bun and runs her fingers through it. “If they keep changing things, this project will never end!”

“Yeah,” he breathes, completely understanding how frustrating this couple is being. She’s complained to him many times about Mr. and Mrs. King, and he can’t wait for her to be done with this project so she can destress a little bit. “It will all be over soon, though. Just a few more weeks, yeah?”

“Yeah,” she says, sitting up and slinging a leg over his lap, straddling him.

He looks up at her naughty little face and suddenly realizes she’s not  _ quite _ as tired as she let on.

He grins, running his hand up her torso and up her breast. At her escaped groan of satisfaction, she leans down, hands on either side of his head and kisses him deeply. His tongue instantly seeks entrance to her mouth which she happily obliges.

Their tongues are fighting for dominance when he brings his other hand up to cup her rear. God, he loves her ass. Moaning into the kiss, he lets her take control.

Sitting up from their heated snog session, her eyes shine down on him with that naughty little look she gets right before she does something unexpected. Her playful, mysterious side that he loves so much.

Grabbing the ends of her shirt, she lifts the t-shirt up and off, flinging it onto the bed next to them. She’s in a blue sports bra, which he quickly divests her of and rubs his thumb across her pert nipple.

Once his shirt is off too, she leans to the side and turns the table lamp off, shadowing the room in darkness except for the moonlight streaming in from the window before capturing his lips in a hungry kiss.

After several minutes of allowing her mouth to explore his, while his hands roam every inch of her exposed skin, he breaks the kiss.

Smirking at her exasperated sigh, he tells her, “Seems someone’s not as tired as they thought.”

“Guess not,” she giggles, leaning down to kiss him once more before whispering into his ear, “Whatcha gonna do about it?”

A lot of things. He’s going to do a lot of things to her tonight. He can’t wait.

{***********************}

A week and a half after picking up Henry from camp, he’s already gone again. Camping this time… but with Robin and Roland. The three of them had decided one night while on the phone during his stay at camp that they just  _ had to _ get a camping trip in this summer before going back to school. 

Robin promised Regina late one night, while laying together in bed discussing plans for the rest of their boys’ summer vacation, that Henry would get his camping trip in one way or another. Henry has gone every single summer since he was five with Daniel on a camping trip. Seeing as Daniel is away, seeking the help he needs, Regina was upset that her son wouldn’t get his beloved trip. Robin, reassuring as always, had run his hand through her hair, kissed the top of her head and vowed to take both boys of a spectacular camping trip before the summer was out.

They’ve been gone all weekend, three blessed days she’s had alone in her apartment. It’s been nice, the quiet. Not that she doesn’t love the hustle and bustle of two boys and a grown man running around her living space. Their summer has been relaxing, a little hectic at times, but fun. All things considered, she’s been able to enjoy her time with them while still maintaining her projects at work, but having time, with no children around, to clean and tidy up the house has been a godsend. 

She’s just put away the last bit of Henry’s laundry and is making her way down the hallway into the living room when she hears the key in the lock. 

Tiny feet come bounding into the house with a, “Gina! We’re back!” resounding through the quietness of her home.

Chuckling, she tosses Roland’s stuffed monkey, which he’d left here on accident and they had to spend an hour calming him down about once they made it to the woods, on the couch and catches the small boy as he flings himself into her arms.

“I’m so happy you’re back!” she exclaims, pressing tiny little kisses to his cheek gingerly before pulling back to look at the other two boys. “Happy all of you are back!”

Regina wraps her arms around Henry’s shoulders as he comes over, and Roland nestles into the crook of her neck. 

Setting Roland down, she kisses Henry on the forehead, asking how his weekend was. He tells her is was  _ beyond awesome _ . Tells her they went fishing and he caught the biggest fish out of everyone. He laughs, recounting how Robin almost fell in the water, which causes Roland to giggle and pipe up, adding that he didn’t catch a fish but it was okay because  _ Papa and Henry caught enough for all of us! _

They tell her how, along with their new fish dinners each night, Roland also requested they make s’mores, which of course Robin obliged. Roland babbles on giddily, telling her how he liked his marshmallows to get really brown before smushing them between the graham crackers and melted chocolate square.

She ushers the bouncing boys into the living room as Roland continues describing their adventures while Henry listens, adding a few details of his own along the way.

Regina tells them it sounds like they had a great time, and Roland adds an all too sweet, “You’ll have to go next time, Gina!”

Robin snorts from where he stands behind the kitchen counter while Regina deadpans a look at the young, hopeful eyes of both of their sons that resolutely says  _ no _ . That one camping trip as a child, in a tent all too small for her, was enough to know she is not the camping type. 

She’s glad Henry got this weekend away, though. It may not have been with his father, but from the way he and Roland can’t stop talking, it would seem he had an amazing time. He loves the woods, so thank goodness he has another man in his life now that enjoys it just as much.

Looking over to Robin, smirk firmly in place as he listens to the boys chatter on and on about their weekend, she taps Henry on the nose and makes her way over to him in the kitchen.

He’s grabbing himself a beer and asks if she wants one as well, leaning down to place a kiss to her lips. God, she’s missed those lips the last three days. Would kiss him harder, more deeply, if their children weren’t in the living room right in front of them. 

“No, thanks,” she answers, wrapping her arms around his middle.

He peeks over her shoulder in the direction of the boys. They must be distracted for the time being because he slides his eyes back over to her and ducks his head down to be level with hers. She smiles and tips her face up to meet his more fully as he presses his lips to her firmly. It’s quick, but far from chaste, his tongue peeking out to trace the seam of her lips briefly before she opens her mouth, returning the favor. She moans a quietly before pulling back and looking into his blue eyes.

“I missed you,” she whispers into his ear, running a hand through his hair and letting it rest at the base of his skull while her other loops a thumb into his belt loop.

“And I, you,” he answers back, nuzzling his nose into her neck, causing goosebumps to rise on her skin.

He lowers his voice even more, mumbling how he can’t wait to get her alone tonight. 

Good. She can’t either.

“Why don’t you go sit and I’ll start Roland’s bath?” she asks as he rubs his hands along her biceps. She knows camping in a tent, especially with two young boys, couldn’t have been that restful, so she knows he’s going to sleep like a baby tonight - is bound to be like death walking right now as it is.

“I didn’t want to sit and stink up the couch,” he says, grinning ear to ear. She likes to keep a clean house and  _ has _ just spent the last three days deep cleaning it, so she appreciates the thought.

She laughs at that, wrapping her arms around his waist and placing another quick kiss to his lips. She lays her head on his chest, breathing him in. “Mmm, well, you do smell like forest.”

His head goes back in a laugh at that, pulling his head forward again to look into her eyes. “Admit it, you like it. Makes me smell more manly.”

With a scrunch of her nose, she purses her lips, saying, “Maybe a little,” and steps away, walking toward the living room.

{***********************}

Regina tells the boys that they both need baths before they can even think about eating dinner. And, well, she’s right. If the sweaty body smell coming from himself is any indication, he knows the boys are in just as desperate need to be clean as he is.

She sends Henry off to the hall bathroom to shower, while she takes Roland’s hand in hers, saying he gets to bathe in the  _ big bathroom _ (as his son so affectionately calls her en suite bathroom). This news causes Roland to let out a, “whoop!” and a, “Come on, Papa!”

They make their way into the bathroom, chatting about what all they need to do in order to prepare for Fourth of July at Neal’s house by the lake.

“He said he’d have all the main dishes ready - hamburgers and hotdogs, but we could bring some sides,” he tells her as he sits down on the lid of the toilet. 

Regina is helping Roland strip out of his forest scented clothing, tossing them into Robin’s lap with a grin as she says, “That sounds good. We can make a pasta salad and maybe take a fruit tray.”

She tells him they’ll need to take food for the other nights they are there, as well.

“Let’s take stuff to make s’mores!” Roland adds, plopping down into the now warmly filled tub. 

Regina giggles, rinsing his hair with water before squirtting a dollop of kid shampoo into her hand and running it through Roland’s wet curls, massaging it in a little bit as she does. “We can definitely take  _ some _ ,” she tells him, giving him a pointed look. “You don’t need to eat s’mores every night.”

“But they’re so good!” the boy protests, a laugh escaping him as Regina tickles his bubble covered belly.

He loves watching her like this, with his son. She’s such a natural mother, and he’s reminded in these small moments just how lucky he and Roland got in finding her.

Looking over her shoulder toward him, she asks Robin to grab some bath toys she stashed under the sink while cleaning this weekend.

He stretches, opening the sink cabinet and pulling out the plastic containers that strain water. Roland is always fascinated with watching the water ooze out of the tiny holes, says it’s like tiny waterfalls in his tub.

Just then, Henry joins them, leaning against the door jamb clad in his striped pajama pants and thin gray t-shirt.

He asks what they are talking about and upon hearing they’re discussing what to take to Neal’s for the holiday, he perks up a bit more. “We should take that new archery set Robin bought to play with!”

“Yeah!” shouts Roland with glee. “That’ll be fun!”

Laughing, Regina looks over her shoulder to Robin who just shrugs. It was a kid’s archery set, complete with two plastic bows and a dozen soft arrows, and he just couldn’t resist buying it for the boys when he first saw it, despite neither one of them having a backyard to play with it in. Neal’s lake house was the perfect excuse to pull it out. Regina rinses off Roland’s body, saying with a smile, “Now that, we can take.”

They discuss what all they want to do while at the cabin aside from archery practice - like fishing (of course), playing frisbee in the big front yard, lighting up sparklers to run around with, and watching the big fireworks.

Henry has apparently always loved Fourth of July, always fascinated with the bright lights of the fireworks. He tells them so, which causes Roland to alert the group that he is afraid of the loud noises.

“It’ll be alright, lad,” Robin reassures, saying they can even take headphones to help cancel out some noise if need be. 

Regina smiles over at him, saying she has a pair that will work perfectly.

Roland squeals in delight at this news, splashing his green container into the water, causing a small bit to fly onto Regina’s shirt. 

“Oops,” Roland mumbles, looking sheepish.

Regina just giggles, though, and ruffles his hair as best as she can with as wet as it is.

With that, Robin stands, stretching his back. “I suppose I’ll go wash this forest smell off of me now.” He winks in Regina’s direction, causing her to smirk. 

“‘Bout time,” she mumbles back playfully.

Swatting at her shoulder as he goes, he sees Henry take his vacated spot on the lid of the toilet and hears the three of them continue their discussion of Fourth of July, and fireworks, and all the games they’ll play, and sleeping in a big house next to a lake. 

The boys are all too excited for this trip, and he has to admit he’s pretty excited, too.

{****************************}

_ Thoughts? :) _


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it! The final chapter of Designing Love. Thank you so much to those of you who supported me with likes/kudos, reviews and sweet messages throughout this process. This was my first multi-chapter fic, so I hope I did okay lol! I am currently working on an EvilCharming story and have another OutlawQueen mulit-chap fic in the works… so stay tuned!   
> As always, please leave a review and let me know what you thought :) Thanks!  
> {*******************}

**Chapter Twelve**

Weeks after the Fourth of July festivities, summer has come to an end. Robin, Regina and the boys had gone to Neal’s house by the lake to grill out and watch fireworks. Emma had gone with them, and Robin was pleasantly surprised to see his best mate still hitting it off with the blonde, not that he ever doubted his friend.

They’ve been back from the lake for almost a month, but last he heard from Neal (and Regina), their friends were still spending time together and getting more serious as the days went on. It’s fun, having their best friends date, makes it easier for them to double date and spend time with their friends respectively.

With all the excitement of the holiday and his friend finally finding a good woman to spend time with, Robin almost forgets that with mid-August comes back to school shopping.

That’s how he finds himself at the mall with Regina and their sons on this hot summer day.

“What do you think of this, Papa?” Roland asks, rushing out of the dressing room to show off a pair of dark jeans and a new, yellow t-shirt displaying a shark with black sunglasses on.

Regina has been in the dressing room with both boys helping them try on all the new clothes that they weren’t sure about the fit of. Sure, most t-shirts could just be thrown into the shopping bag and not be worried about, but some shirts and mainly their pants, needed to be tried on.

While Regina helps the boys, Robin is out in the aisles, searching the sale racks for pants that he thinks might fit, even though with the way both boys seem to be growing at a rapid rate these days, he’s not sure how  _ long _ they’ll fit. Hence why he’s hoping to luck out and find some pants on the sale rack. No sense in paying the ridiculous full price the stores ask for when they won’t fit by Christmas time anyway.

Chuckling at his son’s enthusiasm as he rounds the corner into the fitting room, Robin responds, “Looks great, my boy! What do you think, Regina?”

A distracted  _ mmhmm _ is all he gets in reply as she fixes the jeans Henry is trying on.

As she pushes her hair out of her eyes, she looks up at him and smiles. “They look great, Roland. I think those are a good pair to get.”

After two hours of trying on, what Robin claims is  _ every bloody pair of pants in the whole store _ , the foursome finally make their way from the department store and over to the ice cream shop that resides inside the mall.

“I think we got a good amount today,” Regina says, setting down their shopping bags at the table as Robin and the boys bring over their ice creams. It was two small cones for the boys – chocolate with crushed Butterfinger for Henry, Rocky Road for Roland – and one scoop in a cup for the adults. Robin chose birthday cake, while Regina chose apple turnover, her favorite. “We got lucky that it was all on sale and I had that coupon.”

“Mmhmm, lucky for us since these two seem to be growing like weeds!” Robin exclaims, ruffling the hair of both boys simultaneously, causing them to giggle.

Noticing Regina isn’t laughing along with them, and she’d seemed quieter than usual in the store he smiles over at her. Taking her hand and giving it a little squeeze, he says, “You alright, love?”

“Yeah,” she smiles and sighs, leaning back in her chair and taking a bite of her sweet treat, “I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”

He’s positive her farmhouse mansion project is the issue. It has been the bane of her existence for the past few months; it’s almost finished, and he knows she’s ready to be done with it.

“The farmhouse is finally almost done, thank God,” she says, looking over at Henry and handing him a napkin to wipe the chocolate from his face. “And  _ this one _ ,” she brushes his hair to one side, “is going to be in middle school next week.”

At Henry’s  _ moooom _ , Robin chuckles at his almost-teenage tendencies and reassures her that she’ll feel better once the farmhouse is done and that she’ll adjust to having a middle schooler in no time.

Smiling softly at him and nodding, she takes a deep breath before saying, “I know. It’ll be fine,” and leans over to give him a quick peck to his lips.

“Eww!” Roland grimaces, causing both adults to laugh.

“Sorry, my boy. When you’re older you’ll appreciate kissing the woman you love.” Winking at his son, then sliding his eyes over to her to see her cheeks blushing, he finishes the last bite of his ice cream.

Cleaning up Roland’s ice cream covered face, then tossing their trash away, the four of them make their way to the car. Regina’s hand is tucked inside his, while Roland holds her other hand and Henry walks beside Robin, both of them carrying the shopping bags. He stopped holding either of their hands in public a week ago claiming  _ kids in middle school don’t need to hold an adults hand _ , which caused Regina to roll her eyes but ultimately accept that as long as he was next to them, he was safe. She’d told him that night in bed that Henry hasn’t always needed a hand to hold since he was around Roland’s age, but actually hearing him say those words broke her heart a little bit. He’d always be her baby, and Robin assured her with kisses to her brow that Henry would always need her in some way or another.

It was a good day, stressful trying to get all their new clothes amidst the rush of other back to school shoppers, but it was a day spent with his love and their children.

Once inside his SUV, with the bags all loaded in the back and everyone buckled in, Robin says, “So, who’s apartment are we sleeping at tonight?”

{*********************}

It had been a long day, and Regina was exhausted. Stress and the feeling of being overwhelmed with work were the main cause of the tiredness, though, not so much the long afternoon spent clothes shopping with two young boys. 

Looking over at Robin in the driver’s seat, Regina sighs through a small yawn. “That’s a good question... I feel like we’ve toted the boys back and forth the last few weeks.”

Chuckling, Robin agrees. “Aye, that’s because we  _ have _ been taking them back and forth, baby,” he says, picking up her hand from the middle console and placing a kiss to the back of her knuckles.

“We’ve slept at mine all week, why don’t we let Roland sleep in his own bed for a few nights?” Regina asks. They haven’t spent every night together, but the further into summer they’ve gotten since Henry’s been home, the more and more nights they have ended up sleeping under the same roof. Most nights the boys slept in their bed or guest bedrooms, while she and Robin slept in one of their beds, but every now and then the four of them would find themselves all bundled up on couches or blanket forts after watching movies all night together.

It's summer after all, and Regina wanted both boys to enjoy it to the full extent. The floor may have been uncomfortable for her and Robin, which is why a lot of times the adults would end up either on the couch or in the bed while the boys slept on in their fort, but she found she quite enjoyed the nights Roland and Henry curled into either side of her while Robin had his arm draped over them on the floor. Back pain be damned.

“Ro, do you want to sleep in your bed tonight?” Robin asks, looking at his son through the rearview mirror and pulling the boy’s attention from their movie. They’ve been watching  _ Sing _ lately and the songs have been stuck in her head on a loop ever since they discovered it.

“Aw, mannnnn,” Roland whines, causing Regina’s brow to furrow.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” she questions, her eyes sliding from Robin’s face to the two boys in the back seat.

“I want you and Henry to spend the night, too,” he complains, taking his headphones off his head and crossing his arms across his chest with a pout to his lips. “I don’t want to go home.”

“Henry and I will sleep there too,” she giggles, glad that Roland likes them being there just as much as she enjoys it.

At Roland’s brightened face, his  _ oh… ok! _ and checking with Henry that it was fine (he says it is, claiming they’ve slept in their apartment all week, it was only fair, plus he  _ really liked Robin’s place! _ ), they make their way to Robin’s.

The two of them have practically moved into each other’s apartments over the last few weeks. Robin has overtaken a drawer in her bedroom and part of her closet, and Henry’s room has an almost permanent pallet on the floor for Roland. At Robin’s apartment, Regina’s clothes now reside in two drawers and a portion of his closet as well, and his guest bedroom is practically Henry’s room by now (and a playroom for both boys). Henry had left some clothes there last week, so it saved them all time in having to pack bags and toys to go to the other’s living space.

That night, Regina cooks spaghetti and garlic bread, and they all enjoy it before the boys head off to get ready for bed.

“That was delicious, Mom,” Henry compliments, walking his plate over to the sink to rinse it off. He’s always been a responsible young man, but now that he’s getting older, he’s able to help out more around the house, and she loves it. Cuts down her cleaning time, at least, which is always a win win for everyone.

Robin walks back into the kitchen from the hallway, stating that Roland was finally down for the count in his room. They’d had a late dinner tonight, so by time they finished eating, it was past Roland’s usual bedtime.

He walks over, places a kiss to the top of her head, whispering an  _ I love you, _ before walking to the sink and helping Henry load the dishwasher.

While the two of them playfully shove each other and fling wet hands in each other’s directions, Regina rolls her eyes in amusement and clicks on her laptop at the kitchen table, pulling her knees up to her chest.

“Don’t make too big of a mess, I don’t want to end up cleaning up after the two of you pretend to clean,” Regina warns, not sounding as stern as she wants to, but a hint of amusement in her voice instead.

“Yes, Mom,” Robin and Henry both respond, causing the two of them to bust out laughing, pointing to each other and claiming  _ jinx! _

Giggling at their antics, Regina pulls up her designs on the farmhouse mansion and sends a few emails to Mary Margaret, confirming that she has picked up the antiques needed for the last room left to do of the house.

This project has taken more employees than she ever anticipated. Regina has had to wrangle in Mary Margaret, along with Ariel, Kathryn, Mal and Marco. Each member of her team also had an assistant so there were plenty of people to tackle each room, under her supervision of course.

The team had started on the top floor of the mansion, going room by room, and they were finally on the bottom floor. The King’s had gone to stay at their summer home in the Hamptons, claiming they didn’t want to be in the way (even though Mrs. King’s daily emails changing something or asking when the house would be finished certainly kept her  _ in _ the way). Regina and her team had all but finished last week, their only focus now was finishing the kitchen, which ended up being the biggest project once Mrs. King decided she wanted to redo all the cabinets, not just repaint them, and also wanted to switch every appliance to stainless steel (which Regina suggested in their very first meeting, but the woman claimed she liked the white appliances best). The other rooms just needed finishing touches - lamps, throw pillows, some art work - and they would be done.

Closing her computer screen after getting confirmation back from Mary that they were good to go for tomorrow, and being reassured that  _ this is almost over, Regina. Just a few more days,  _ Regina let out a sigh of relief. She was glad to have Mary Margaret working with her. The girl had started as an intern, and they clashed at first, until one day Mary had come to Regina’s aid and helped solve a design crisis that no one else in the office seemed the be able to do. Now Regina consulted her on all projects, and she was more than just an assistant to her.

Looking up from the computer, Regina sees Robin smiling at her from across the table. The apartment is quiet now, she notices, and after glancing past his shoulder at the kitchen sink, she sees all the water has been cleaned up and dishes have been placed in the washer.

“Where’s Henry?” she asks, her eyes sliding back onto his.

He stands up and takes her by the hand, pulling her from the chair and into the direction of the living room.

“He’s gone to brush his teeth,” he tells her, sitting down on the couch and patting the spot next to him.

Smiling, she curls into his side as he places a kiss to the side of her head.

As his hand trails lazy patterns on her back, she flips through the channels on the television before settling on House Hunters. It’s cliché of her to love this show, she feels, but she can’t help it. Robin finally admitted late one night while they were on their fourth episode that he loved this show and liked to laugh at people’s ridiculous complaints

_ “The wall color isn’t right!?” he exclaimed, pointing toward the couple on the t.v. “You can bloody well change a wall color. That shouldn’t stop them from buying the entire house.” _

_ Giggling, Regina tells him, “You’d be surprised at some of the things people will complain about.” _

_ “Well, it’s just stupid… but,” he says, kissing the top of her head, “I do actually enjoy this show.” _

_ “I know,” she grins, leaning up to kiss him fully on the mouth. _

_ They ended up not seeing which house the couple chose as they were too busy grinding into each other’s laps on the couch and making out like teenagers before Robin stood, taking Regina with him, her legs wrapped around his waist, back to the bedroom for a full night of passion.   _

Henry walks back out into the living room, causing both adults to look up from the television screen.

“Did you brush your teeth, sweetheart?” she asks, standing to give her son a hug before he goes to bed.

“Yes, Mom. See?” He smiles in her direction, causing her to chuckle as she stands from the couch.

“Alright, alright. Let’s go get you in bed then,” she says, wrapping her arm around his shoulders and turning him in the direction of the hallway.

As he’s turning, Henry says, “Goodnight, Robin,” to which Robin responds in much the same way.

After tucking her son in bed, Regina makes her way back out into the living room to find the TV turned off along with all the lights. Confused, she turns back around and heads toward the bedroom.

Walking in, she says, “Baby, I didn’t think we were already going to be-” stopping mid-sentence at the sight before her, a smirk blossoming on her face.

Robin is laying on his bed, naked from the waist up and arms locked behind his head with a naughty grin on his face.

“I wasn’t planning on going to sleep anytime soon, either, love,” he tells her, sitting up and beckoning her over to him.

Grinning at him, she saunters over to her bed, slowly stripping pieces of clothing off one by one. Her shirt is the first thing to go, and by time she gets to him, she’s only in her red shorts and black, lace bra. He sits up as she comes to stand in between his legs dangling off the edge of the mattress, and he begins unzipping her shorts for her, sliding them off her body slowly.

Climbing into bed and straddling him, she returns the favor by running her hand along the elastic band of his boxers, hooking her fingers into it and helping him slide out of them.

Smirking up at her, he huskily whispers, “God, you’re so beautiful,” causing her to blush but lean down to place a kiss to his chest, then his shoulder, neck, chin and finally his lips.

While a moan escapes her lips, his hands begin unclasping her bra. Rolling off and coming to lay next to him, he sits up and slides her lacy black thong down her legs, kissing a trail down her hips and legs.

He lays between her legs and kisses the inside of her thighs, trailing his hand in a light pattern along her calves. Pulling him up by the shoulders, she brings him to lay on top of her while she kisses him passionately. It’s slow, unrushed, and sends a jolt of affection through her body.

She loves this man and his insatiable sexual appetite. The couple find themselves having sex almost every night, and she always goes to bed feeling satisfied. Robin knows her body better than any man has ever known it, even more than Daniel. They spent time one night after their first time together lazily exploring each other’s bodies and finding what made the other tick. It turned out to be one of the best nights of her life. Like Robin, she now knows  _ his _ body almost better than she knows her own, and she loves to nip and suck at the places that make him melt.

Sighing into the kiss, she breaks apart to look into his eyes.

“What is it, darling?”

“I’m just glad we found each other,” she tells him, overwhelmed by her love for this man. He leans down to capture her lips again before telling her over and over again how much he loves her.

“I’m glad too, love. Glad we both got our second chance.” He smiles down at her, trailing his hands up and down her naked hip, “and I don’t plan to waste a single minute of it.”

Grinning like idiots at each other, they both lean in for another kiss, hands roaming over naked forms and their breath coming out in deeper pants. It amazes Regina that just by the touch of his hand traveling over her body can she get so wet.

His fingers finally find her slick folds, dipping in to find that she’s already wet and ready for him.

Lifting his eyebrows at her, she giggles and breathes, “I’ve wanted you all night.”

Letting a moan of his own and an  _ oh fuck _ slip out, Robin rubs the tip of his cock at her entrance. Nodding to let him know she’s ready, he pushes into her, filling her completely.

Groaning at the sensation, Regina’s nails dig into his shoulders as he begins rocking his hips.

They had decided a few weeks ago to forego using condoms since she was on the pill.  _ Saves us some time _ she’d explained, and he told her he wasn’t about to argue that logic.

They make slow, passionate love that night, him on top, propping himself up on his elbow so that he can gaze into her eyes.

It’s with a  _ Robin – I’m gonna – oh! _ that she lets go, Robin following closely behind her. He rolls off and out of her, coming to lay on the bed beside her as they pant and catch their breath.

After a few long, quiet moments, Regina turns onto her side, propping her head up on her hand and looks at him, tracing absent circles along his stomach with her other hand and smiling a lazy smile.

“What are you thinking about?” he asks, turning to peer at her, a smile that matches hers on his face.

Shrugging her shoulder, she looks over to him apprehensively, “Do you think Marian would have liked me?” It’s a question that’s been on her mind for some time. She knows Daniel will come around eventually and that he and Robin will get to know each other one day. But she’ll never know Marian, will never be able to talk to her about Roland or share stories with the woman. Regina knows that Marian was a wonderful woman and a great mother, and she never worries about measuring up to her, she just often wonders if her and Marian would have gotten along, maybe bonded over being mothers of two young boys.

“Oh, Regina,” he sighs out quietly, brushing the hair from her eyes, “I  _ know _ Marian would have loved you. You’re very similar, and she would loved the way you take care of Roland as if he’s your own.”

Smiling, she tells him she does love Roland, and she’s glad she found someone with such a great kid. “Could you imagine dating someone with a kid that sucked?”

Laughing, he wraps his arm around her waist, bringing her to lay closer to him, and kisses her shoulder. “Hopefully one day Daniel will accept me too, since I plan to be in Henry’s life for quite some time.”

Beaming, happy he’s planning to be in her life like she plans to be in his, she takes his hand that’s on her hip in hers, tracing the outline of his tattoo. “He will, Robin,” she promises, “He seemed to like you that night he came to tell me about going to Maine. I think he’ll be fine after working through some of his issues.”

“Yeah,” he breathes into the space between them, running his hand through her hair, “I hope so. For all of us.”

He leans in then, pressing his lips to hers, before pulling back and looking into her brown eyes.

“What?” she chuckles, tucking her hair behind her ear.

Shrugging with a dimple displaying grin, he tells her, “Nothing. I just love you, that’s all,” and leans in to kiss her lips again, giving her bottom lip a light nip.

After a quick shower, they dress in their pajamas and get back into bed. She curls herself into his side, loving the warmth his body provides. He likes the house to be a bit colder than she does and had told him one night that if they were going to keep the air so low, then she was allowed to cuddle into him when she needed the warmth. He, of course, said he didn’t mind one bit and pulled her even closer, telling her he’d warm her up whenever she needed him to.

With the fan blowing, and Robin’s soft snores next to her, Regina finally floats off into a peaceful sleep, totally content.

{********************}

A few days later, Robin walks into his apartment with his son in tow. Roland had spent the day with Tink running errands and playing at the park. She’d taken him back to her apartment to nap and play until Robin got done with work, so he’d picked him up there. 

Roland makes a bee-line for his room as soon as the front door opens, running down the hallway with a  _ wahoo! _ He told Robin on the drive home that he missed his toys while at Tink’s today, so he’s anxious to get to his room and play. He keeps some toys at his nanny’s apartment, but  _ not all of them, Papa _ . Robin makes a mental note to remind his friend to let Roland grab some of his more cherished toys before going to her house again. Tink and Ro often spend days at her apartment, so he’s surprised it’s never come up before.

Grinning at his son’s excitement, he takes out a beer from the fridge, enjoying the silence of the living room; the only sounds to be heard in the apartment are his son’s squeals of laughter coming from his bedroom. He’s had a rough day at work, but his son always seems to lift the fog surrounding him after a long day. Robin pulls out his phone when it buzzes against his leg inside his pocket. It’s Regina. He’s in a funk from work but doesn’t want to ignore her. Hell, he knows she’ll probably be able to pull him from his sour mood more than anyone else.

Picking up, he greets her with a dejected  _ hi, love _ , and she immediately knows something is not right.

“What’s wrong?” her caring voice asks from the other side of the device. He smiles despite himself; she can always make him feel better and he loves her for it. She comforts him just by being her, even if it’s just by the sound of her voice.

“I just had a really shit day, darling,” he admits, huffing as he flops onto his couch, “and I don’t want to bring you down by coming over and moping around your apartment.”

Regina apologizes, trying to make him feel better, but he assures her there’s nothing for her to apologize for. He changes the subject then, asking how her day went. He knows she was revealing a project to a client this afternoon but hadn’t had to chance to check in with her yet about it. She tells him all about how the beach condo project she’s been working on turned out great, the client loved it, and were going to recommend her to do their cousin’s condo next door to theirs the following month. It would be nearing the colder months by then, so Regina’s excited to work on a beach project and enjoy some last minute heat while it lasts.

She’s adorable, going on and on about how proud she is of her team for pulling this off so quickly, and she is excited to work with Ursula Seaway again.

She invites him and Roland over, saying she could prepare plenty of food, but he just doesn’t want to be around people right now, even if it was just her and Henry. He doesn’t want to put a damper on her good mood, loves her too much for that. Although he knows, deep down, that if they were to go, she’d tell him it was fine, that nothing could bring down her good mood today.

Robin, on the other hand, feels like shit. His day had started out fine, meetings to go over the final touches of his biggest campaigns, like the salsa company, and a business lunch with a new client that turned out to be a great deal of fun. The client, John Littleton, was hiring him to whip up an advertisement for his lumber company. The burly man was down to earth and reminded Robin of a roommate he’d had in college, so the two of them hit it off right away.

When he got back to his office, however, Belle had buzzed in on the speaker, letting him know that Tucker Friarson, one of his best employees, was needing to meet with him. Tucker, Tuck for short, has been with Robin’s company since the start, one of his first hires, and he’s come to consider the man a great friend, one of his best. They’ve spent weekends together going to football games and grilling out with Neal on several occasions. His other employees that he’s had since the very beginning, like Will and Allan, always joined them, too. Neal claimed that his co-workers were like the Merry Men, and he wasn’t sure how they ever got any work done in between all their goofing off. It was like working with your frat brothers. It was awesome.

Tuck had come in and told Robin that he was giving him his two weeks notice, effectively pulling the rug out from underneath him. To say he was blindsided was an understatement. Turns out Tuck had decided to pursue his devotion to his faith and was going to seminary to become a priest. Shocked, he shook his friend’s hand, then pulled him into a hug, telling him he was proud of him – Tuck had always been the most devout to his religion of all of his men – so he knew this was the right path for him. Gutted, he tried to put on a strong face and accepted his resignation. In two weeks, he would be gone.

“I’m sorry, baby,” she says sympathetically, pulling him from his thoughts. “At least you can still hang out with him on the weekends with Neal and the guys.”

She’s right; seminary didn’t mean he was going to live in a monastery. It was like college, but for people wanting to become priests and preachers. So, okay, it wasn’t the end of the world, he knew that, but he was losing a great employee. Tuck has been apart of a majority of Robin’s most successful advertisements, and he’s great with clients.

Sighing, he concedes, “You’re right, darling, I know.”

He tells her he just hates to lose such a great employee, saying it’d be like her losing Mary Margaret.

“Don’t even joke about that,” she says seriously, causing a chuckle to rise from his chest.

He laughs, “I’m sorry,” swinging his feet up to the other end of the couch and covering his eyes with his forearm, “but now you see how serious this is.”

She lets out an airy chuckle of her own, saying, “I would hate to lose Mary, but if it was a dream of hers to pursue, I wouldn’t stop her.”

Looking up toward the ceiling as his arm drops down, fiddling with the remote on the coffee table beside him, he lets out a groaned  _ I know, I know _ , before sitting up.

It’s nearly dinner time, and he needs to figure out what he’s going to cook. Walking down the hallway to peek in on Roland, he sees his son is still merrily playing with his building blocks in his room, crashing his green dinosaur into the towers and letting out a ferocious  _ Rawwwr _ in the process.

Smiling, he walks back toward the front of the apartment, asking Regina what she’s cooking for dinner tonight. She’s a much better chef that he is, and he always likes to get ideas from her. He can’t let him and his child live off of chicken and macaroni and cheese forever, as much as Roland may claim he can. Regina’s like his personal Pinterest board, since he refuses to make an account for the site no matter how many times she swears he won’t regret it, claiming he could get  _ tons of dinner ideas for you boys! _

She tells him she’s making pepperoni calzones with onions and peppers in it, which makes his stomach growl. Damn, that sounds good.

“And what will you be having along with your part of that calzone?” he asks with a smirk on his face, knowing good and well she’s only going to eat a small portion of the cheesy dinner,  _ too many carbs, _ she would say. Regina is a healthy eater, so he’s positive she’s going to have something else, something greener, to go along with it.

She giggles through the phone, telling him, “I’m going to eat a whole  _ half _ of a calzone, thank you very much… but also I’m mixing up a salad as we speak.”

“I knew it,” he laughs, causing her to laugh along with him with a  _ shut up _ coming from her side of the phone. He loves the sound of her laugh, how it starts as a breathy thing and builds up into something just a touch more than a chuckle. 

He feels much better now after talking to Regina, almost has forgotten than one of his best friends is quitting. Shit.

Telling her he’ll let her go finish the salad, he ends their call with an, “I love you, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She tells him to text her later, after dinner, and that she loves him too.

Hanging up, he sets the phone down on the counter and taps his fingers along the cool tile. He’d been in a bad mood when Regina first called him, but now all he can think about is how her laugh came through the phone, instantly causing him to feel better. He wants,  _ needs _ , to see that smile of hers in person. They haven’t seen each other in a few days, both have been extremely busy with work, and the sudden need hits him.

Opening his phone, he sends Tink a text, hoping that she’s able to come by for a bit.

Twenty minutes later, the blonde nanny is there on his doorstep, holding up bags of Chinese take out with a, “Go get ‘em, Tiger,” chuckling out of her mouth.

Kissing her on the cheek and telling her she’s a lifesaver, he walks back to Roland’s room and tells him he’ll  _ be right back, my boy _ .

His son, always the easy going child that he is, bounds into the kitchen, saying he wants to help Tink get dinner set up.

Ruffling his son’s hair and placing a kiss to the top of his head, he makes his way out of his apartment as he hears Roland breaking apart the chop sticks and drumming a song on the kitchen countertop’s surface as Tink just laughs.

{*************************}

As she’s pulling out their calzones, Regina hears a knock on her door. Placing the tray on top of the oven and glancing down the hallway toward Henry’s room, Regina runs her hands down the front of her jeans.

She’s nervous as to who could be at her door. The last time someone showed up unannounced, it was Daniel with those damn sunflowers on Henry’s last day of school. She takes a deep breath, telling herself that Daniel is in Maine. He can’t be at her door.

Looking through the peephole, she raises an eyebrow in confusion.

Robin.

Hadn’t he just said that he didn’t want to come over tonight? She understood his feelings, knows she likes to be alone a lot of the time when she’s had a bad day, so her plan was to just text him some sexy pictures later to make him feel better. And if that led to some great phone sex, well, who was she to argue?

Opening the wooden door, she furrows her eyebrows together. “Robin?”

“Regina, I know I said I didn’t want to be around you tonight, didn’t want to bring you down with my shit mood – “

She tilts her head forward, a curious look upon her face. “Then why are you here?” she chuckles.

“Well, your phone call made me feel better, so,” he says, shaking his head and raising his eyebrows, “I figured today isn’t one of those days.”

Leaning in toward her quickly, he wraps both hands around either side of her face and buries his fingers into her hair. He crashes his lips onto hers, teeth skimming against each other’s and tongues seeking. He pushes her further into her apartment, kicking the door closed behind him with his foot as she lets out a breathy moan before inhaling more air while their mouths part for a second.

Pulling apart, but not letting his hands leave her head, she looks at him with a grin on her face, but a confused look in her eyes.

Chuckling into the small space between their lips, he shakes his head and says, “I just couldn’t stay away from you.”

Fuck. She loves this man. Loves the way he's able to kiss the breath right out of her lungs. Glad he came over because she can’t seem to stay away from him either. The past two days without him have been torture.

Her grin turns into a full blown smile, which she tries to tamper down by biting on her bottom lip and looking down to his lips as she breathes in deeply, chest rising and falling against his. “I’m glad you couldn’t.”

He captures her lips once again in a heat of passion, one of his hands moving from her hair to find purchase on her rear. She moans into his mouth, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer. She loves the feel of his body pressed against hers.

He groans, his hand on her ass moving to grip her hip and walk her backward toward the kitchen island. She thinks for a second about hopping up on the granite surface, letting him have his way with her right there, but, well, Henry is home, and – shit. Henry.

Pulling her head away from his to catch her breath, she opens her eyes, meeting his blue for the first time since she first opened the door.

“Henry is home.”

He smirks, his dimples popping out and making her knees go weak. Both hands hold her hips then as he says, “Ah, yes,” walking them further toward the island as she shakes her head in a slow side to side motion and smirks back at him, sucking her bottom lip in with her top teeth. “But he’s in his room, and he if he doesn’t come out, well, then,” he moves his hand from one of her hips, angling his finger in the air to make his point with his flirtiest, smuggest voice, “we don’t get caught.”

Laughing, her back finally making contact with the island’s edge, she inquires, “And are you going to be the one to explain to him what we were doing?”

His head pulls back slightly further then, his blue eyes practically swimming with amusement as he murmurs, “He’s almost eleven, love, I’m sure he knows what we’re doing.”

Her eye bulge out at his words, causing him to lean in to a place a comforting kiss to her brow. “He does not!”

Okay, so, he’s almost eleven. She knows he’s bound to hear stuff at school, so maybe it really  _ is _ time for her to have  _ the talk _ with her son, but the thought alone makes her cringe. She was hoping Daniel would do it, but seeing as he’s coming nowhere near Henry for the foreseeable future, it’s left up to her. Or maybe Robin. They’re close enough now, maybe he’d do it for her, yeah, that could work.

He laughs into her hair, kissing her hairline one more time before she relents, “You’re probably right.”

Both let out a chuckle, as he leans down to her lips again, trying to regain the heat they’d had when he first walked in. She smiles into his mouth as he bites her lower lip, causing a groan to escape from the back of her throat.

She pulls him by the collar of his shirt, even though they’re as close as two dressed bodies can be already. He sighs into her mouth, tongue seeking access once again. She leans back, the edge of the granite digging into her lower back at this point in the best way possible, letting his lips trail a line of wet kisses down her throat. He swirls his tongue on her collarbone before ascending back to her lips with a moan.

Her hands rake through his hair as he deepens their kiss. His hands are back on her hips now, pulling her closer to him, and her arms are gripping both his biceps. God, he has great arms. She loves the feel of them wrapped around her. Would love to feel them wrapped around her on this kitchen counter, but…

“Ahem,” a throat clears from somewhere to their side. Pulling apart quickly and jerking their heads to the side, she sees Henry standing in the space between hallway and living room, looking at them with amused confusion on his face.

“Robin? What are you doing here?”

“Oh,” he stumbles, pulling his body completely apart from hers, making a shiver run down her when the cool air finally meets her front again. “I, uh, just came by for… dinner.”

Dinner. Yeah, right. He wanted to eat something, alright. She smirks as his words, bringing her hand up to push her hair behind her ears and lick her lips, hopefully hiding the blush creeping onto her cheeks at the thought of her ten year old catching her in a make out session.

She bites her lip to hold in her snort of a laugh when her son questions Robin again by saying, “Where’s Roland?”

A very good question. One she had yet to even think of asking. She’d been more than a little distracted.

Robin tells them he’s with Tink for a little bit, causing Henry to perk up with a  _ cool!  _ before making his way to the couch and picking up his iPad.

Breathing out a sigh of relief that an awkward moment has been averted, she glances toward Robin who is still standing there, hands stuffed in his pockets like a teenager who just got caught by his girlfriend’s parents.

Stifling a giggle, Regina turns to walk around the island and pull out plates from the cabinet for their calzones. She reminds Robin in jest that she only made two  _ since someone said they weren’t coming over _ , but says he can have the other half of hers since she also has a salad and fruit to eat.

“That works,” he agrees, going to pull the carton of fresh pineapple out of the refrigerator, “Tink brought plenty of Chinese food over for Roland, so I can munch on that later if I get hungry.”

She hums her acknowledgment, cutting her calzone in half and plating all of their food.

She tells Henry to go wash up, but he claims he already did. “You know, while you and Robin were too busy making out.”

Closing her eyes in embarrassment, sending up a bout of thanks that her back is toward her son, she clears her throat, saying, “Well, good. Come get your plate, then, young man.”

When she turns, she notices Henry and Robin smirking at each other while Robin tries to send him a playful glare for his words. She shakes her head good naturedly at the pair of them, taking her and Robin’s plate to the table while he grabs the bowls of salad and pineapple with him. She should probably say something to Henry about his cheeky comment, but, well, she doesn’t feel like getting into all of that right now. Maybe later. He needs to know he can’t make inappropriate comments like that when he wants to.

The three of them sit, eat, talk and laugh for well over an hour. It’s nice. Relaxing. She’d had a great day at work, but knows his day was terrible, so she hopes spending time together tonight makes him feel better.

After they’ve all finished, Henry kisses her cheek and says, “I enjoyed it, Mom. It was delicious!”

“I’m glad, sweetheart,” she replies, running her hand through his hair and brushing a piece to the side. He’d eaten almost every last bite, which shouldn’t surprise her. He’s a growing boy, he seems to be eating more and more lately, and she makes a mental note to stock the fridge with healthy snacks that he can munch on after school instead of stuffing himself with junk.

Henry tells Robin bye and makes his way to the bathroom to take a shower. It’s almost bedtime, and he knows he needs to be clean and in his pajamas for the night before she’ll let him read for an hour or so. He tends to read himself to sleep some nights, and she’s learned from experience that waking him up after he’s passed out on one of his books to bathe is a hassle.

Bending down to put his plate into the dishwasher, she feels strong hands grip her hips. Standing up and turning around, Robin moves his arms to encircle her waist as her arms go around his. They stand there for a few moments in silence, her head tucked again his chest. She can hear his heartbeat and it’s soothing her, lulling her into a tired trance.

Breaking the bubble of silence around them, Robin starts to laugh. Not a chuckle or a small laugh, he’s belly laughing, gut bouncing against her torso and bringing a confused smile to her face. He steps away then, hand covering his stomach.

It’s contagious, her own laughter breaking free. Laughing along with him, she asks what so funny.

Calming himself down, he wraps his arms around her waist again saying, “Henry’s face when he caught us kissing earlier was priceless!”

Her smile falls then, looking at him with mock anger. She had  _ not _ found that funny, but now that it’s over and she thinks about it, it was quite embarrassing but humorous.

Shaking her head, she chuckles, telling him, “We might have scarred him for life.”

“Nah,” Robin breathes out, placing a gentle kiss to the top of her head as it comes to rest over his heart again. “If I’d had you on the counter like I wanted then, yeah, maybe,” he chuckles, the vibrations of his chest rumbling against hers. “But he’s a boy. He’ll understand one day.”

Rolling her eyes, she sighs. “Let’s just never mention that again.”

“Alright, love.”

He pulls back a touch, causing her to remove her head from his chest and look up into his blue eyes. He places a kiss onto her lips, and pulling apart, she murmurs into the space between them that she loves him. He returns the sentiment and leans in to press another kiss onto her plump lips.

She smiles into it, pulling back and saying coyly, “Although, having me on this counter  _ does  _ sound like a good idea.”

He smirks then, wagging his eyebrows and pushing her toward the island.

“Not now, Robin!” she laughs, swatting at his arms. “Henry is here. We definitely don’t want him walking in on  _ that. _ ”

They both laugh, pulling apart from each other completely. She moves to close the dishwasher door as he walks over to her trashcan and removes the full bag. Tying it up, he tells her he’ll drop it off at the chute on his way out.

She takes his free hand then, walking toward the front door. He sets the bag down, luckily it was mainly paper that filled this one up so it doesn’t smell or leave his hand feeling sticky, and takes her other hand in his.

They stand there for a second, just looking into each other’s eyes. He leans in, pressing one more passionate kiss to her lips. His hands leave hers and wrap around her body once more, while hers do the same around his neck. They can’t seem to get enough of each other today, not that she’s complaining.

Groaning, he separates their lips, saying, “I really need to get home to Ro.”

“I know,” she whispers, rubbing her thumb along the surface of his tattoo before adding, “We’ll have to find a date night where we can come back here and use that island.” She tries to wink then, which ends up just being an elongated blink, while a sultry smirk blooms on his face.

“Sounds like a plan to me.”

Leaning in to kiss him once more, this one more gentle than most of the ones shared tonight, she sighs into his mouth. Pulling apart, she murmurs a  _ goodnight _ to him as he picks up the trash bag and opens her front door.

Turning around to look at her one more time, he winks (actually winks) at her and pecks her lip’s scar before making his way down the hallway.

{*********************}

A week later, the farmhouse mansion is finally done. Regina had gone in this Saturday morning to put some last minute finishing touches on the house with Marco and Mary Margaret. She’s been working, and stressing, over this project for month, so Robin is glad she can finally put it behind her. He had assured her the other night when she was worrying about the light fixtures for the kitchen that this project was going to boost her clientele ten fold and that she should be proud of all the work she’s put into it.

_ “I know,” she told him, laying her head on his chest while cuddling on the couch. “The Kings have just been a living nightmare. I’ll be so glad when it’s all over.” _

_ Kissing the top of her head, he tells her he knows. “We will just have to celebrate when it’s all said and done.” _

_ She chuckles a dry laugh, “ _ if _ they ever let me finish.” _

_ Smiling down at her, he promises, “They will, love. And once you’re done, we’ll celebrate an amazing job well done, add the pictures to your portfolio and never work with the Kings again.” _

_ “Mmm,” she moans, “that sounds like a dream. Can’t wait.” _

Roland’s voice pulls him from the memory of that night when he asks where he should hang the balloons.

The boys have been helping him decorate his apartment all day while Regina has been busy at the King’s mansion. Streamers have been put up in every doorway, and Robin had even taken the boys to pick out a cake for her (yellow cake with buttercream frosting that is covered in icing balloons and sprinkles and the words  _ You’re free! _ written on it in jest.)

Henry is currently blowing up different color balloons, while Roland hops up and down awaiting his turn to tape a balloon to a wall.

“This is the best!” Roland exclaims, grabbing a yellow balloon from Henry’s hand and taping it to the outer rim of the kitchen island.

Glancing to the kitchen, Robin sees that the whole perimeter of the island is now covered in balloons. “I think that’s enough in the kitchen, boys,” he laughs, “Let’s put some in here.”

With twins  _ yeah!’s _ , the boys make their way to the living room where Robin is hanging a banner above the t.v. that says  _ Congratulations! _

After covering as much space as they can with balloons, the boys rush around, slapping streamers as they pass through the hallway’s archway and giggling all the way back to Roland’s bedroom.

Shaking his head at the boy’s excitement, Robin puts a few finishing touches on the decorations and looks around. It looks pretty good to have been decorated by a five (almost six now, as he likes to remind Robin) and ten year old. It’s colorful, and he’s positive it will make Regina happy.

Just then, there’s a knock on the door. Going to open it, he finds Emma and Neal standing on the other side.

“Hey guys,” he says cheerfully, pushing the door open wider, “Come on in. The boys just finished hanging the balloons, and – “

“I can see that,” Emma chuckles, walking in and tapping one of the many balloons around the edge of the kitchen counter with her finger.

Snickering, Neal wraps his arm around his girlfriend’s waist and assures Robin the place looks amazing. Emma and Neal have been attached at the hip since they started dating, and he’s happy for his best friend. He deserves someone that makes him happy, and so does Emma.

“She’s gonna love it, man,” his friend tells him, stepping further into the apartment and scanning the kitchen and living room’s decorations.

With Emma’s nod of agreement, he makes his way into the kitchen with the blonde trailing behind him.

“Need any help?” she asks, walking over to the oven where his taco meat is cooking. He wanted to make something fancy for her, but when he thought of a meal that made him think of her (and something easy since he wasn’t the best of cooks), he kept coming back to tacos. It was their first home cooked meal together when Regina showed up one night so many months ago, frenzied over worrying that she’d pushed him away for good. How wrong she had been back then. He’s made her tacos a few times since that night, and she always comments on how delicious they are, so it’s what he went with.

He  _ hmmm’s _ then tells her, “The tacos are basically finished, but feel free to pull out some wine glasses.” He motions over to the cabinet with his spatula. “Regina should be here soon.”

Hearing Neal do his best impersonation of a T-Rex from the back of the apartment and the squeals of little boys, Robin chuckles. His friend has always been wonderful with Roland, and he’s so glad he’s just as great with Henry, too.

Laughing at her boyfriend’s antics, Emma brings the wine out and opens it so it can breathe. “He’s great with the boys,” Emma comments, glancing in the direction of the hallway.

“Yeah,” he smiles, his eyes going toward the direction of the bedrooms, then back to the stove. Just then, Neal, Henry and Roland all come down the hallway dressed in different costumes. Henry is dressed like a policeman, while Roland opted for the dinosaur costume. Neal could only fit into the pirate’s accessories – a hook for a hand, eye patch and hat that was dangerously close to falling off (it is a kid sized hat, after all).

Laughing at their costumes, Robin reminds them that Regina will be home soon so they can only run around in their costumes for five more minutes.

_ Okay! _ is shouted from all three, as Neal scoops Roland onto his shoulders and they begin chasing Henry back down the hall. His apartment is filled with chaos and laughter, and he loves it.

Thirty minutes later, everyone is back to their regular clothes and standing around the kitchen. Regina texted him soon after the boys came out in their costumes to let him know she was finally headed home. She has no idea that they’ve decorated and invited their friends over, but he hopes she enjoys the surprise.

Hearing the key in the lock (they’d exchanged keys soon after Henry got back from his summer camp), Robin reminds the boys to stay quiet.

“Okay,” the boys whisper in unison, while Roland covers his mouth to keep his giggle locked inside his belly.

They’ve turned off the lights, save for the small light above the stove so Regina won’t see all the decorations when she first walks in.

As the door swings open and she flips the light on, letting out a confused, “Robin?”, the boys jump out from behind the island shouting, “Surprise!” as the adults join in, too.

Gasping, Regina brings her hand to her heart. “Oh my goodness!” she exclaims as Henry and Roland run to wrap their arms around her middle. “What is all this?”

“It’s your party, Mom!” Henry cries, waving his arm in the direction of the living room.

Her eyes roam the living room as the boys run around pointing out different things they’d picked out, before finally landing on the kitchen. Seeing Emma and Neal, she laughs and goes to hug her friends before turning to wrap her arms around Robin’s torso.

With glistening eyes, she looks up at him and says, “You didn’t have to do all of this.”

Kissing her lightly, he assures her he did. “You’ve worked  _ so _ hard over the last few months, you deserve this.”

Smiling brightly, she looks all around, saying, “Thank you, Robin.”

After the tacos have been eaten (which she loved) and cake has been stuffed into all of their mouths, the celebration goes on smoothly, everyone laughing and enjoying the company of each other. The boys, of course, end up back in costumes chasing each other (and Neal) around. Robin joins in after a while, causing Emma and Regina to chuckle and migrate to the kitchen so the boys can play in the living room. They clean up and load the dishwasher, which Robin keeps telling them not to do.  _ This is your party, love. I’ll clean it up later, _ he keeps telling her from across the apartment, but the two women are clearly not listening as they keep washing the dishes anyway. Robin takes a break from the boys’ game and sits at his kitchen counter for a few minutes, listening to the women prattle on about their days.

“Neal took me to lunch at that new Italian restaurant downtown. Have you guys been?” Emma asks, handing Regina the plate she just rinsed off and glancing over her shoulder to Robin.

Placing the plate into the dishwasher, Regina shakes her head. “No, we haven’t made it over there yet. Was it any good?”

The blonde tells them it was  _ freakin amazing _ and that they need to go  _ as soon as possible _ .

Laughing, Robin looks up from his phone where he’d been thumbing through his Facebook page and says he’ll have to take Regina and the kids there some time soon.

After placing a few more dishes in the washer, Regina looks over to her friend with a grin on her face. “I’m glad you and Neal seem to be working out so well. It’s amazing what happens when you actually date a nice guy.”

“Shut up,” Emma laughs, swatting Regina’s arm with a dish towel, “You knew we were going to be great together after you made one of those damn pro-con lists. Don’t even lie.”

“Oh,” Regina chuckles, holding up her hands and pointing in Robin’s direction, “ _ We _ definitely knew. It was  _ you _ that was denying it.”

Emma giggles, saying she denied it for a little bit but finally gave in. “He’s a great guy.”

“Well, I’m happy for you, Em,” Regina says sincerely, placing her hand on Emma’s arm. With that, Robin stands, stuffing his phone into his pocket and claiming he’s going to go join the men for  _ some real fun. _

As he’s walking away, he hears Regina say, “And what luck that we’re dating guys who are best friends?” Looking back over his shoulder at that, Robin chuckles, catching Regina’s eye and giving her a little wink.

“Right?” Emma exclaims, causing both women to giggle.

After a few more minutes of rinsing off the dishes, they finally finish and head into the living room to watch all the boys, grown men included, chase each other around the room. Every now and then, one of the boys (or men) would beg Regina or Emma to come play, but both women decline, sitting together and scrolling through their Instagram feeds, showing each other funny memes they run across.

After a while, once the costumes have been put away and the four rambunctious boys have calmed down, the two youngest ones dog pile in the living room, breathing heavily. Emma and Neal go to take their leave, claiming they’re exhausted from all the partying.

With Robin’s sly  _ mmmhmm, sure, _ the four adults chuckle and make their way to the front door. The boys head into Roland’s room to play some more before bedtime and yell their goodbyes down the hallway when Regina tells them Emma and Neal are leaving.

Hugging Emma, Robin tells her, “Thanks for coming.”

“No problem, anything for Regina,” she assures, turning to hug her best friend.

Regina and Neal exchange hugs and goodbyes, too, before the newly paired couple make their way out of the door.

Locking the door behind them, Robin turns around and leans against the back of it.

“How did it go today, love?” he questions, pulling her into a hug.

Sighing, she tells him, “It was great, actually. I was really nervous that they were going to hate something about it, but Mrs. King actually  _ cried _ .”

She smiles up at him, then takes his hand and leads him over to the couch.

“She walked through each room, and with every new room, she would gasp and tear up,” she recalls to him, beaming with pride. He finds himself smiling just as widely back at her, happy to know the reveal went so well. Regina is a talented woman, and he’s so proud of her for pulling off this humongous project.

She tells him that Mr. King was very impressed and mentioned possibly hiring her to redo their house in the Hamptons. Regina admits she was hesitant at first, not exactly wanting to go through the pain of working with Mrs. King again, but remembered the Kings are high paying clients and are well known throughout the city. No plans are set in stone, yet, but Mr. King assured her that  _ if  _ and  _ when _ they decide to redo their summer home, she’ll be first on their list of calls.

“He said he needed his wallet to rest a little bit before letting his wife redo another one of their homes,” she chuckles, his laugh matching hers.

“Well,” he says, pulling her to sit in his lap. She has to sit sideways instead of straddling him since she wore her tight, black dress today. The dress is sleeveless, but it sits below her knees so it still felt professional enough to wear to the big reveal. She paired it with a black jacket that has a gold zipper and red shoes for a pop of color. She always likes to look, what she called this morning,  _ top dollar,  _ when revealing her finished product to a client. “I’m proud of you. And I’m glad it’s over, for your sake.”

Laughing, she leans down to kiss his lips before saying, “Me too. I’m so glad it’s over. Now I can focus on Dr. Whale’s office. Mary’s husband, David, is hiring us to redo his vet clinic, too,” she continues, “but I’ll probably let Mary take lead on that one.”

Rubbing his hand down her leg, he looks into her eyes, smiling at her.

“What is it?” she chuckles, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. He does this sometimes, stares into her eyes as if she’s the only person in the world. She likes it, despite it making her feel self-conscious. Knows it shouldn’t, this is just Robin, after all, he loves the way she looks, no matter what she’s wearing or how much makeup she has on. 

“Nothing, love. You’re just beautiful.”

Swatting his chest playfully, she gently slides from his lap and takes his hand, pulling him up from the couch. She eyes the small, children’s sized table stashed in the corner of the living room, which houses the Harry Potter puzzle the four of them have been working on the last few weeks.

“Come on,” she says, placing a peck to his cheek, “You pull the puzzle out while I go change into something more comfortable.” She spins him around and gives him a light push toward the puzzle’s table, saying, “I can’t sit and do the puzzle in this dress!”

{***************************}

Once he’s pulled the table out further into the living room (they’d pushed it into the corner to give their guests more room tonight), Regina comes out from the bedroom. She’s changed from her dress to a pair of black yoga pants and one of his Penn State t-shirts.

Grinning at the shirt that she swore she’d never wear, he tells her, “Nice shirt.”

“Whatever,” she rolls her eyes. “It’s the softest t-shirt you own. So sue me,” she says, giggling as she goes and collects their glasses of wine they left on the kitchen counter.

“Oh, before I forget,” she starts, walking back into the living room toward the table Robin is sitting in front of, one knee propped up with his arm resting on it, “I told Tink that she could come with me one day to Whale’s office and see how I do things.”

Tink has been studying interior design, was the whole reason Robin hired Regina in the first place, and the girl has proven over the last few months to have a good eye for certain designs. She and Regina have been able to talk a few times about her plans after graduation, and Regina has had the idea for a few weeks to take the blonde under her wing and show her the ropes of the decorating world.

He takes the wine glass she’s offering to him from her hand and says, “That sounds good. I’m glad she has someone like you to show her how things work in this world she’ll be graduating into within the year.”

“Yeah,” Regina agrees, nodding, “She’s a good kid. I’m happy to show her the way. Maybe she can even intern with me when she graduates.”

Ariel will be going on maternity leave in a few months, so having a fresh set of eyes around the office will be helpful, plus she likes Tink, thinks they could become really good friends if given the chance, so she’s excited to have the girl around at work. 

“That’d be amazing, baby,” he says, pulling her in to kiss her cheek before eyeing the puzzle pieces closest to him. “I’ll let her know tomorrow about shadowing you and just tell her to text you so you girls can work out what day she’ll join you.”

“Sounds good.” She pecks his lips one more time before sitting next to him and picking up a puzzle piece, placing it into it’s destined place.

After a few moments of lazily working on the puzzle, with Flea Market Flip softly playing in the background, and a few  _ where the bloody hell does this piece go?’s  _ from Robin, she giggles and looks over at him.

“Thank you, Robin,” she tells him, leaning in to kiss him soundly, surprising him as a hum rumbles in the back of his throat. “Tonight was wonderful. And just what I needed.”

Smiling back at her, Robin says, “Good. You deserve it… and so much more.”

Gazing at each other for a few moments, they grin and go back to working on the puzzle. It may be Henry’s, but they all love working on it, she and Robin sneaking a few pieces into their respective spots each night. It may be a kids toy, but they enjoy it too. It’s relaxing and helps them unwind some nights.

“We better not do  _ too _ much or Henry will be cross with us.” He laughs, causing her to look up at him in horror.

“Oh, god,” she says, taking a sip of her wine and placing her latest piece into the correct spot, “You’re right. Just a few more pieces, this section is tricky anyway, he’d need one of us to help him I’m sure.”

He  _ Mmm’s _ in agreement with her, sipping his own wine.

They spend the next twenty minutes talking about their night – Emma and Neal’s new relationship, to which she exclaims, “I told you they were going to be great together!” causing him to laugh, the boy’s antics, and the delicious food he’d made.

“That cake was amazing. I think Neal snuck out of here with a piece or two,” she giggles.

“I think you may be right,” he laughs, placing another piece of the puzzle into its spot and telling her they really need to finish reading the book series with Henry now that he’s on the last Sister’s Grimm book. He’d been reading Harry Potter for the longest time, but once he discovered the retelling of the fairy tales, he was hooked.

“I know,” she sighs, closing her eyes briefly as she tilts her head to the side, “He likes reading before bed on his own now, which makes me sad… I want to see how it all ends, too, since he and I started reading them together so long ago.”

He laughs, agreeing and saying they might need to sneak into Henry’s room and take the ones he’s already finished the next time they’re at her apartment.

“That’s a great idea,” she giggles, “Although, I’d much rather do other things in the bedroom with you than read Harry Potter.”

Chuckling softly, he agrees and tells her they can read for a few minutes and, “ _ then  _ have our fun.”

She nods with another breathy giggle, picking up her glass to take a small sip. He does the same, sitting and enjoying the silence with her encompassing his apartment. There’s been a lot of noise tonight with everyone celebrating, which has been a blast, but he so enjoys these softer moments alone with his love. 

Looking around his apartment, he sighs. “School is starting in a few weeks.”

“Yeah…” she answers back in a confused tone, eyes narrowing.

Setting his wine glass down on the table next to hers, he takes her hand in his and looks at her. “We already talked about how we’ve been carting the boys back and forth the last few weeks. We can’t keep doing this once school starts,” he says seriously.

“I know,” she sighs, sitting back so her back is up against the couch, “They’ll need to be in a routine in their own houses, their own beds… I’m just going to miss sleeping next to you every night.” Smiling up at him, she continues with, “We’ll just have to make it a weekend thing, I guess,” shrugging a bit sadly. She knew it couldn’t last forever, their slumber parties at each other’s houses just being a fun summer routine for the boys. They’ve only switched a handful of times, and the boys loved it, claiming it was like miniature adventures each time, but she knows, logically, both children need their own beds once the school year begins.

He hums his agreement, but she can tell his thoughts are a million miles away.

“Mmhmm,” he says, clicking his tongue on his teeth in thought, “or not switch back and forth at all anymore.”

She looks at him with confusion in her eyes. “Wh - what?”

Chuckling at her alarm, he wraps his arm around her and looks into her brown eyes. “How would you and Henry like to live with me and Roland?”

Regina’s face breaks into a beaming smile as tears well up in her eyes. Leaning in to kiss his lips, she pulls back and says, “I would love to, baby,” kissing him one more time, “But I need to check with Henry first, of course.”

Robin smiles lovingly at her, “Of course, darling, I was hoping we could talk to the boys together in the morning about it, see what they think.”

Wiping the moisture from under her eye, she looks around, saying, “If Henry  _ is _ okay with it, which I’m almost certain he will be, whose apartment would we live in?”

Laughing, he tells her, “It doesn’t matter, my love, as long as I’m with you. You choose.”

Her heart melts. She loves this man with everything she has and the four of them living together just make sense to her. She knows she’s the adult and ultimately makes the decisions for her family, but having Henry’s blessing on this would mean the world to her, would make everything seem so much more final. Her son is her entire world, her heart, so getting his approval is important to her, especially when she and Robin have only been dating for six months. She knows it’s quick, but Henry loves Robin and Roland, so she’s excited to talk to him in the morning about everything. She  _ hmmm’s  _ in thought, then says, “Let’s make a pros and cons list.”

He chuckles and mumbles a  _ so practical! _ into her lips as he kisses her one more time.

“Of course!” she exclaims, leaning in to deepen the kiss.

They discuss the fact that his apartment is closer to both the boys’ schools  _ and _ Granny’s (“a double win for me, to be honest,” he says at the thought of still being close to their beloved diner), but her apartment is closer to their offices.

She reminds him that, “Your apartment has a guest room, unlike mine,” kissing him once more. She can’t seem to get enough of his lips tonight. Having an extra room would be more practical, she thinks, as she reminds Robin, “So both boys would have their own rooms.”

“I think that settles it, then.” He smiles, running his hand along her jaw before bumping his nose against hers, “Close to Granny’s  _ and _ the boys both have a bedroom?”

She leans her head back and laughs, “I’m going to have to get you a gift card to Granny’s!”

“Don’t play with my heart,” he teases, placing a dramatic hand over his chest before leaning in to press his lips to hers again. The thought that now she’ll get to do this, to kiss him, whenever she wants crosses her mind and makes her giggle in delight.

Smiling brightly at him as they break apart, she says, “So, pending our children’s approval, we’re really doing this?”

“We’re really doing this,” he states seriously, pulling her into his lap. She goes willingly, straddling his legs and wrapping her arms around his neck, placing a kiss to his cheek.

She runs her hand along his stubbled jaw, gazing into his eyes as if he hangs the sun and the moon.

“I love you,” she tells him reverently, kissing him soundly on his lips, her tongue seeking entrance to his mouth.

Moaning, he parts his lips and lets her tongue slide against his for a few moments before he pulls back, telling her sincerely, “I love you, too, Regina. So much.”

After a few silent moments, her head on his chest, listening to his heart beat in the quiet of the late night apartment, she sits up and says, “I can’t wait to talk to the boys in the morning. I have a feeling they’re going to be really excited!”

“Oh, they will be,” he chuckles, thinking of all the times one or both boys have made comments about  _ one day being brothers _ , which always made him smile. Suddenly, Regina sits up and looks around the apartment with a slight grimace on her face.

His brow furrowing, he says, “What’s the matter?”

Grinning, she looks back at him and says, in her most serious voice she can muster between the wine in her system and the elation of Robin’s question, “You have some pretty ugly furniture, though.”

His head falls back against the couch’s cushion and his mouth opens to let out a guffaw, before looking back at her and capturing her lips, saying, “Well then, get designing, love.”

Regina rolls her eyes (but is smiling all the same) at him, telling him he’s  _ too cheesy for his own good. _ Laughing, he leans over and places another kiss to her lips, saying, “But you love me anyway.”

“I do,” she sighs, standing to take their wine glasses into the kitchen.

As she walks away, Robin can’t help but smile to himself. Seven months ago when he hired Regina Mills to be his decorator, he never imagined his life would change so drastically. Their relationship started off rocky, fueled by insecurities left over from her past relationship, but he couldn’t feel any luckier than he does right now that she chose to push that anxiety to the side and give their love a chance. He never thought he’d find a love like this again, one so fitting in every way, but he’s so glad that he did. He knows it’s been short, shorter than most relationships, but it doesn’t make their story any less epic. Regina and Henry are a part of his family now, and he can’t wait to see what the future holds.

 

END.

{*******************}

_ I have an epilogue in the works… but I’m not sure when that will get posted lol _

_ Hope you enjoyed! Please review :) _


	13. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I posted this as Day 6 of Happy Ending Week, but I wanted it to be here too, so if you didn’t read it under “Happily Ever Afters” then here it is! Lol Thank you for all your support during my first multi-chapter fic, and as always, please leave a review and let me know what you thought :)  
> {**********************************}

Pregnant.

The word keeps flashing through her mind ever since she took a test earlier today. Regina is feeling a cacophony of emotions - excited, terrified, worried, emotional. She and Robin have been married for two years now, it’s not like this is an ill-timed pregnancy. Things are great - work on Mayor Heller’s mansion had gone over swimmingly. He’d loved her redesign of his residence so much that he’s hired her to redo his summer home. She’ll be starting that project in the next few weeks, as soon as she finishes the King’s summer house.

How nice it must be to own a summer home. They could afford it, they really could, what with Robin’s business going so well with his multi-million dollar deals and Storybook Décor gaining such a large clientele over the last two years. But it seems a bit pretentious to her. Maybe once the kids are grown and moved out… in another eighteen years, she thinks, daydreaming of that pregnancy test again. 

Tears well in her eyes. A baby. Her and Robin made a baby all on their own. She loves Roland as if he were hers, forgets sometimes that he  _ isn’t _ hers by blood, but it’s exciting to think of a baby with her and her husband’s genes mixed together. What will he or she look like? She imagines dark, raven hair like her but crystal blue eyes like Robin. God, she loves those eyes. She hopes any child they make, this one or any of the others she’s suddenly planning to have over the next few years, come out with his eyes… and dimples. 

He always claims he could look into her eyes for an eternity, just like he’d told her while proposing when he said,  _ “You are so gorgeous, my love. I love looking into your eyes; I was born to gaze into them, I’m convinced.” _

She’d giggled at him at the time, but when she thinks about it, he isn’t half crazy. A life where she gets to look at him forever is a pretty good one to her. She could stare at him for an eternity.

Thinking of her proposal, she remembers how he’d asked her to, “ _ make me the happiest man on this Earth and marry me,”  _ and she can’t help but smile as she sits in her kitchen chair, hand rubbing her still flat stomach that this news might just make him the happiest she’s ever seen him. 

Standing, she walks to the stove, pulling the kettle from the burner as it whistles it’s completion. Steeping her tea bag in her favorite mug (the one that has two handprints on it, one for Henry and the other, Roland, and the words “ _ WORLD’S GREATEST MOM!”  _ inscribed upon it), she thinks of ways to tell Robin her joyous news. 

Does she do some big, grand gesture? Or does she just hand him the test wrapped in a little bow? Should the boys be there? She shakes her head at herself, walking toward the living room to cuddle up on the couch. She wants to do this just the two of them before they tell their sons. 

Pulling the blanket up over her legs and placing her laptop on her thighs, she clicks on the television. The house is quiet today, too quiet with Robin at work and her sons over at Emma’s. Her best friend and Neal had gotten married a year ago, and just welcomed a little baby girl six months ago. The boys, who she thought at first wouldn’t find any enjoyment in spending time with a newborn, have actually surprised her. Henry and Roland love playing with Elizabeth and often ask to go visit. 

Today had worked out with Robin needing to go into the office (even though it’s Sunday) and Regina needing to catch up on some digital designs, so off the boys went to Emma’s house. Neal had picked them up earlier with a trio of  _ wahoo!’s _ echoed throughout their apartment. 

Giggling at the memory, she picks up her phone to text Emma, wanting to check in on her sons. The blonde assures them they’re fine, sending her an adorable picture of Roland holding the baby as Henry reaches for Elizabeth’s chubby little hand, so Regina sits back, sipping her tea and drawing inspiration from the Property Brother’s episode that is playing in the background. 

She opens her laptop, sending Tink an email to check in on the their former nanny’s progress in her first solo project. Tink had graduated from design school a few months after Regina and Henry moved in to Robin’s place. Since then, the girl has interned with Regina, and when the internship was up, Regina just couldn’t let her go. She’s been working at Storybook Décor for a little over two years now, and has proven to be a worthy asset. 

She and Tink send a few messages back and forth, confirming wall colors and decoration she’d found at a flea market. After a while, she clicks over to the King’s summer home, finalizing the last few touches with Mary Margaret.

Regina had sworn up and down during her first go round with the Kings that she would never,  _ ever _ work with them again, but a year later, Mr. King had informed her that they were renovating their summer home like he’d told her after she redid their regular mansion and would be needing her design assistance in the near future. This project has taken far longer than their first house, rounding in on about ten months at this point, but she’s almost done. Mr. and Mrs. King haven’t been  _ as _ insufferable this time, which she’s been very thankful for. 

Pulling herself from her thoughts about work, she opens up a new tab on her browser and opens up Pinterest. She’s clueless as to how to tell Robin about the baby, so surely someone on this website has a cute idea. 

After scrolling for a few minutes, her face lights up. Perfect, she thinks. She orders what she needs and closes her laptop, deciding she needs a shower before all the boys get home. 

{******************}

Thank God for next day delivery, Regina thinks to herself, as she places the box on her counter. Last night had been torture not telling Robin about the baby. He’d noticed her odd behavior, she has no doubt about that. He kept asking if she was alright, if she needed anything, if she felt okay… to which Regina just smiled, promising him she was fine. She just had, “a lot of work to think about.” 

Robin, like always, had been understanding, offering to give her a shoulder rub while she got some work done on the laptop in bed that night. She’d willingly accepted. 

Pulling the surprise out now, though, the tears spring to her eyes again. A baby. She can’t believe she’s going to have another baby. Henry’s pregnancy had been so easy, she was only sick for the first month. Her ankles were swollen near the end, but all in all, it had been a breeze. She’s heard horror stories of how each pregnancy can affect a woman differently, so she’s anxious to see how this one plays out. 

She wraps the gift up, placing it on the top shelf of the hall closet. She’d hate for Roland to find it and open it, effectively ruining the surprise for everyone. He’s only eight (almost nine, as he likes to point out every chance he gets), so she’ll cut him some slack.

She’d dropped Roland and Henry off at her parent’s house a few hours ago for a fun filled evening of horseback riding with her father and dinner at the country club and came home to clean the apartment. 

After cleaning the living room, she began pulling out ingredients for dinner. Tacos. Their go to dinner for special occasions now. It’s simple, and not fancy by any means, but they hold a special meaning to them and their relationship. 

As she’s turning off the oven’s burner where she’s been browning the meat, the front door opens. Looking to her right, she sees Robin walking in, hanging his briefcase on the hook by the door and slipping off his jacket. 

“Hey, love,” he says with a tired smile, making his way over to where she stands, one hip leaning into the kitchen island. He bends down, placing a kiss to her lips. 

She lets it linger, longer than he was planning if his surprised moan is anything to go by. Pulling apart, she smiles brightly up at him. “How was your day?”

He’d had to work later than usual, calling earlier to let her know he’d be home around eight instead of his usual six. That worked out for her though, having worked until five herself, then rushing to get the boys to her parents’ house after they came home from school. 

Robin walks to the refrigerator, pulling out the Brita and filling two glasses of water. He tells her work was fine, talks about the  _ Sleep Tight: Baby Shampoo _ project  he’s been handling lately (the baby body wash campaign he’d done for them their first year together had been such a success, the company couldn’t think of anyone better to handle the new  _ Sleep Tight _ product) and tells her his newest employee, Mulan, has been a great help. “She’s been a huge asset to this project, and seems to fit in with the guys just fine.”

Regina smiles, glad he was able to find someone who fit in. He’d hired a man named Greg after Tuck went to seminary, but the man had been terrible at his job, and couldn’t make it at Locksley Advertising. Robin had fired him a month into his employment. 

He takes the waters he’s poured over to the table before walking back over to Regina, wrapping his arms around her waist. She leans her head back onto his shoulder and sighs, imagining in a few months how her belly will be rounded and he might not be able to wrap his hands all the way around her. She giggles to herself at the mental image, excited already to get there. 

“What’s so funny?” he asks, pressing a kiss to the back of her head. 

She giggles again, assuring him it’s nothing. Regina moves out of his embrace, bending down to pull the taco shells out of the oven where she’s placed them to stay warm. “Do you want the hard or soft shell tonight?”

He hums, going to pull plates out of the cabinet. “I might do one of each to start.”

Rolling her eyes at his never ending appetite, a trait both Rolan and Henry seemed to have picked up lately, she takes the offered plate from his hands, giving him a grateful smile. 

After fixing their plates, they move to the table, sitting across from each other. They eat, and talk, and relax, commenting on how weird it is to have the boys out of the house two days in a row. They’d eaten dinner at Neal and Emma’s last night before being delivered back to them, so they’ve had both evenings just to themselves, a rare luxury in the lives of busy parents, especially with Regina’s mother offering to keep the boys over night and drop them off at school in the morning. Regina smiles to herself, thinking how they won’t have one of these for a while once the baby comes, but she couldn’t be happier about that. 

Her feet end up in his lap when she finishes eating as Robin rubs them lightly, digging in when he reaches the arch of her foot, knowing those always hurt more than any other part. 

“Mmm,” she moans, closing her eyes and leaning her head back. “That feels amazing.”

He smiles, placing her feet back on the ground and standing, taking their plates. “Why don’t you move to the couch while I clean up, my love, and then I’ll give you a proper rub down?”

She grins at his wagging eyebrows but doesn’t protest. Regina stands, placing a kiss to his cheek and a pat to his rear as he walks away. He chuckles out a  _ minx _ as he makes his way to the kitchen.

While he’s rinsing off and loading their dishes into the washer, she scurries to the hall closet to grab her surprise. 

She places it on the coffee table before snuggling onto the couch to wait for him. He’s talking to her about their weekend plans, how Neal wants all of them to go to his lake house on Saturday just to get away and let the baby experience it for the first time, but as soon as Robin utters the word  _ baby _ , her mind is gone, imagining once again what their baby will look like. Will she have dark hair or blonde? Brown eyes? Blue? Whatever she has, she’ll be beautiful. Or he. It could be a boy, but Regina just has a feeling, maybe just wishful thinking, that this one will be a girl. 

“Where’d you go?” Robin chuckles, picking up her legs to sit, placing them back down in his lap. His hand begins to rub lightly up and down her calves, giving the balls of her feet a nice squeeze each time. 

She laughs out a, “Sorry. In my own world, I guess,” before sitting up and reaching for the present. 

Robin’s eyebrows crinkle as he shakes his head gently, asking, “What’s this?”

Regina sits criss cross on the couch, making sure to face him completely as she hands it over. “Just a little something I saw that I wanted you to have.”

“What’s the occasion?”

“No reason,” she laughs with a shrug to her shoulders, leaning over the press a peck to his lips. 

He smiles at her, telling her she didn’t have to get him anything, especially for no reason at all. She just shrugs again, urging him to open it. 

As he’s peeling the paper away, Regina wrings her hands together, suddenly nervous of his reaction. She knows he wants a baby, has no doubt about that, but is this the way she should tell him? Maybe she should’ve just given him the pregnancy test yesterday after taking it like most people do. “I need to tell you something, so I bought this to help me.”

He’s tosses the paper into her lap with a smirk and is lifting the lid of the box, but tilts his head up to look at her, confusion coloring his features. “What do you mean?”

“Just open it, babe!” she giggles when she sees he’s stopped his ministrations on the present. 

He chuckles, turning his attention to the box. He places the lid onto the coffee table before peering down inside.

Silence. It engulfs them for a second, and Regina feels as if all the air has left her lungs. He’s staring at his gift, eyes wide but brows furrowed. He looks up at her, eyes glistening, then looks back down into the box. 

“Regina,” he whispers. “Truly?”

He pulls out the pregnancy test first (which she cleaned thoroughly beforehand), staring at it in disbelief. He covers his mouth with one hand, still holding the test close to his face with the other, the little plus sign staring at him dead on. He looks at her again, eyes still as wide, then looks down in the box. He places the pregnancy test on his knee while he pulls out the onesie she’d ordered. It’s a little light gray one with the words “Let the Adventure Begin” written on it in white, a small arrow underlining the word  _ adventure _ . It was too cute to pass up when she saw it yesterday online, knowing this is definitely going to be a new adventure for their family. They’ve never raised a baby together - three AM feedings, diaper changes, crying and teething… she can’t wait. 

“You’re pregnant?” he asks incredulously, still looking at her in disbelief. His eyes drift down to her stomach as if he can see the baby through the layers of clothes and skin. When he looks back up to her for confirmation, his eyes are wet, a single tear threatening to fall down his cheek.

She giggles wetly, nodding her head and swallowing around the lump in her throat. “Yes,” she breathes shakily, “We’re having a baby, Robin.”

He lets out a deep breath, moving the contents of his present to the table so he can wrap Regina in his arms. “Oh my god,” he cries, that tear finally falling. 

She reaches up, wiping the tears from his cheeks and pressing her lips to his. They pull apart, smiling widely at each other. “We’re having a baby,” he whispers reverently into the space between them. 

Robin pulls her into his lap, her legs dangling off one side as her arms wrap around his shoulders. He buries his nose into her neck, breathing her in and whispering  _ I love you _ over and over again. 

He sits back, looking into her eyes, and reaches up to wipe the wetness from under her eyes. “I love you too,” she tells him, bumping her nose to his. 

“So what’s next?” he asks excitedly, pulling her close to him as he settles back onto the couch. “Do we go to the doctor? We need to buy clothes, and diapers, and bottles, and…”

She laughs at his questions, at his excitement, promising all of that will come. “It’s still really early, honey, but yes, I need to make a doctor’s appointment first.”

He nods, telling her to let him know when it is so, “I can take off work. I want to be there, at every single appointment, so I can get a glimpse of this little guy every chance I get.” His hand finds its way to her stomach, giving her a gentle rub. 

“Little guy, huh?” she asks, turning her head to look at him with a raised brow. “What if it’s a girl?”

He chuckles, placing a kiss to her shoulder. “Then she’ll be the most beautiful baby girl to ever be born… and the most protected with all these boys around her.”

They laugh together, imagining how protective Henry and Roland would be of their baby sister (if Elizabeth is any indication), along with Robin looking out for her. 

“She’ll never date with all of you surrounding her,” she laughs, running a hand through Robin’s hair. 

“She won’t need to date!” he declares indignantly, “She’ll have me, and Henry, and Roland to keep her company.”

She tilts her head back in laughter, saying they’ll cross that bridge when they get there. She scoots off his lap, cuddling into his side as they both prop their feet up onto the wooden coffee table. “First things first, we have to wait a few more weeks to even see if it’s a boy or a girl.”

Robin sighs, whispering an  _ it’s going to be a girl, I can just feel it _ , which makes her smile, glad to see she convinced him so easily that their baby would be a girl. She’ll be overjoyed and will love another baby boy, no doubt, but it’d be nice to have some more estrogen in this apartment, too.

“Boy or girl, it’s going to be amazing,” Robin says, resting his head atop hers. They sit in silence for a beat, his hand never leaving her abdomen.

She laces their fingers together over her belly, talking quietly with one another about how her stomach will grow over the next few months. They discuss what color hair and eyes they think it’ll have, agreeing that no matter what, it’ll be beautiful. 

“The boys are going to be so excited!” Robin says suddenly, breaking their bubble of silence. “Roland’s been asking about a baby ever since we came home from the cruise!”

Regina laughs, agreeing that both boys will be very excited. “They might not be  _ as _ excited when the baby wakes them up at four AM crying, but they’ll love her just the same.”

There’d been lots of babies surrounding them two years ago, half a year before their wedding, on their family cruise, and Roland has been insistent ever since that they needed a baby in this house. After Emma gave birth, he’s been asking more and more about when  _ their baby was going to get there _ , leading Regina to tell Robin that it might be time to explain where babies come from to him.

He laughs, pulling her closer and pressing another kiss to her lips. “The boys will love this baby,” he says, rubbing her stomach again, “no matter what it is.”

She hums in agreement, telling him she wants to wait a little bit longer before they tell the boys, to which her agrees. Smiling up at him, Regina pats Robin’s chest softly and presses a gentle kiss to his lips before sitting up. She stands, holding out her hand for his, and he takes it, standing and wrapping his arms around her waist. Regina smiles, leaning in to kiss his lips fully. They stand there, enjoying the freedom that comes with not having any little boys’  _ ewwww’s _ echoing throughout the apartment at their displays of affection. 

She deepens the kiss, letting her tongue trail along the line of his lips until he opens, granting her access. Her hands intertwine into the hair at the nape of his neck, while one of his hands holds her waist and the other pushes her hair back before cradling her neck. He moans, opening his mouth wider. They stand there, hands roaming and mouths connecting until the need to breathe is too strong. They break apart, both smiling ear to ear. 

“Robin,” she says seductively, stepping back and taking his hand. “Take me to bed.”

He smiles cheekily, lacing their fingers together and pulling her down the hallway in the direction of their bedroom with a  _ gladly, darling,  _ falling from his lips. He turns the lights in the living room off, save for the lamp that’s on a timer, ensuring they won’t need to leave their room the rest of the night to come clean up or turn anything off. 

She giggles, grabbing him to her halfway down the hall and kissing him soundly. He walks them back so her back presses against the wall, kissing and sucking her neck. “I love you,” she breathes out, letting her hand roam down his back. 

“And I, you,” he vows, stepping back a touch and running his nose along the length of hers before picking her up and carrying her back to the comfort of their bed. 

She never thought three years ago when she agreed to move in with Robin that life would take such a drastic, yet wonderful, turn. Engaged, married and pregnant all within the span of almost four years. It hasn’t seemed too quick to her, though, they’ve just been living life. That’s the thing with soulmates - it’s all about the timing. You don’t need a lot of time to figure life out, you just live it… together.

{********************}

_ If you missed Robin’s proposal that I referenced at the beginning of this story, it can be found in my first chapter of “Designing Our Future”. Remember, DOF is by prompts only so if you would like to see more of Robin and Regina in the Designing Love verse, DM me prompts on here or twitter and I’ll add them to the list! Thanks again for your support :) _


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